2008 European - Broadband and Internet Markets

In the cable sector, consolidation among operators, particularly in Germany and the Netherlands, has strengthened the cablecos’ ability to compete against DSL providers. Continuing network investments in 2009 and 2010 will enable them to provide the fastest copper-based broadband available to consumers, ranging up to 120Mb/s, while a 20Mb/s service is envisaged in some markets from 2012.

Telcos have similarly invested in DSL technology, generally through hybrid VDSL/fibre networks which have helped reduce customer churn while increasing broadband ARPU through delivering supplementary services such as VoD and IPTV. By 2010 a number of municipal and national governments will have implemented broadband infrastructure upgrades to help secure local jobs and improve citizens’ access to a range of services including education and health care. In addition, several governments have committed to part-funding NGNs and allocating stimulus package revenue to telecom infrastructure.

Broadband penetration is higher among EU member states than non-member states due to competition and subsequent incumbents’ focus on broadband-delivered services such as IPTV and triple play. Broadband and Internet market competition varies across Eastern Europe, with competition healthiest in countries with a well-designed and enforced network access regime or substantial alternative access infrastructure such as cable TV networks.

DSL remains the most popular technology platform for broadband access although fibre is making inroads, with notable deployments in Central Eastern Europe, Russia and the Baltic region. Stakeholders driving fibre access network deployments include incumbents, alternative operators, municipal governments and utilities.

Data in this report is the latest available at the time of preparation and may not be for the current year.

The following notes provide some background to our scenario forecasting methodology:

·         This report includes what we term scenario forecasts. By describing long-range scenarios we identify a band within which we expect market growth to occur. The associated text describes what we see as the most likely growth trend within this band.

·         The projections shown in the tables in this report are based on our own historical information, as well as on telecommunication sector statistics from official and non-official, national and international sources. We assume a possible deviation of 15-20% around this data.

·         All statistics for GDP, revenue, etc are shown in US$, in order to maintain consistency within and between markets. At the same time we acknowledge that this can introduce some irregularities.