China will pass the US in total broadband lines by the third quarter of 2006 to have the largest subscriber base in the world (see Figure 1). The US and China are followed by Japan, South Korea, Germany, and France in total broadband lines per country.
The Bandwidth Report Category: Broadband
European Broadband Penetration Gap Widening – US Broadband Penetration Nears 75% Among Active Internet Users – September 2006 Bandwidth Report
Sixty-four million people now have broadband access across the 25 countries of the European Union – but the gap between the best and worst performers is widening (see Figure 1). Denmark, the Netherlands, and Finland lead the European Union in broadband penetration while Greece, Slovakia, and Poland trail according to a recent broadband survey by ECTA. Back in the US, broadband penetration among active Internet users neared 75% in August 2006.
New Jersey Leads Nation in Broadband Penetration – US Workplace Broadband Breaks 90% – August 2006 Bandwidth Report
New Jersey edged out Hawaii to lead all states in broadband penetration with 48.6% of NJ households subscribing to a high speed connection. Mississippi trails all states with 14.4% of households on broadband at the beginning of 2006. Meanwhile, workplace broadband penetration broke 90% for the first time in July 2006. US broadband penetration among active Internet users grew 0.76 percentage points to 73.86% in July 2006.
Home Broadband Growth Doubles with 42% of all Americans on High-Speed – DSL overtakes Cable – US Broadband Penetration Jumps to 71.8% Among Active Internet Users – June 2006 Bandwidth Report
Home broadband users grew by 40% from March 2005 to March 2006 in the US, twice the growth rate of the year before. As of March 2006, 42% of all Americans had a broadband connection at home, according to a recent study by Pew Internet (Horrigan 2006). 35% of all Internet users have posted content to the Internet, with the majority of new content posted by broadband users. DSL has passed cable in the US, and broadband penetration among active Internet users jumped 1.32 percentage points to 71.76% in May 2006.
Bush Broadband Goal Gored – US Broadband Penetration Breaks 70% Among Active Internet Users – Broadband Study Highlights Two-Speed Europe – May 2006 Bandwidth Report
President Bush’s goal of universal broadband access for all Americans by 2007 appears to be overly optimistic, according to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report. The GAO study found that only 28% of Americans had broadband in 2005.
US Broadband Penetration Nears 70% Among Active Internet Users – US-Canadian Broadband Gap Narrows – April 2006 Bandwidth Report
US broadband penetration jumped 1.39 percentage points in March 2006 to 69.39% among active Internet users. Broadband penetration should easily break 70% by April 2006. Over the past year, the broadband gap between Canada and the US has narrowed from 20 percentage points to 6.6 percentage points. Since last March, US broadband penetration rose 12.4 percentage points while Canadian broadband penetration was flat.
Apple’s iTunes Player Climbs Streaming Media Charts – PC Time Tracks Broadband Penetration – US Broadband Penetration Jumps to 68% Among Active Internet Users – March 2006 Bandwidth Report
Podcasting is taking off, according to recent data from Nielsen//NetRatings and Apple. Unique users of Apple’s iTunes player passed QuickTime in mid-2005, and at current growth rates iTunes should pass RealPlayer by mid-2006. People are tuning in over twice as long with iTunes than with RealPlayer or Windows Media Player. US broadband penetration jumped 1.33 percentage points in February 2006 to 68% among active Internet users. At current growth rates broadband penetration should break 70% in April of 2006.
Internet Videos Spawn Performance Anxiety – Rural-Urban Broadband Gap Closing – US Broadband Penetration at 66.7% Among Active Internet Users – February 2006 Bandwidth Report
Streaming media is hot, but servers and users are even hotter. As higher bandwidth content streams to more bandwidth-hungry users quality of service can suffer. Some industry experts are wondering if the existing infrastructure can scale to handle the load. Meanwhile, the rural-urban broadband gap is closing according to PEW Internet. The US continued its inexorable climb to 66.67% in broadband penetration among active Internet users in January 2006.
China will pass US in Broadband Lines by late 2006 – Worldwide Broadband Survey – US Broadband Penetration Breaks 65% Among Active Internet Users – January 2006 Bandwidth Report
At its current growth rate of over 90% per year, China will pass the US in total broadband subscribers by late 2006 to become the largest broadband country in the world. The US has fallen to 19th overall in household broadband penetration, and is in danger of being passed by Slovenia in early 2007. Israel leads all Middle Eastern and African countries, and is the third country overall in broadband penetration. Hong Kong leads the Pacific Rim, with a broadband penetration rate of over 73%. Meanwhile, in December 2005 the US passed 65% in broadband penetration among active Internet users.
Telcos Tout Two-Tier Internet – Hotel Broadband Battles – US Broadband Penetration Nears 65% – December 2005 Bandwidth Report
AT&T and BellSouth are lobbying Congress to create a two-tier Internet where their own services would be transmitted faster than their competitors. The battle is largely over video transmission, which requires prioritized delivery for the larger bundles of bits needed for smooth display. Google, Yahoo, and others major sites are fighting the legislation that Congress is considering. In other broadband news some hotels are blocking VoIP, 1 in 10 Xmas cards are sent over the Internet, and broadband penetration in the US rose to 64.89% in November 2005.