Asia Pacific at forefront of broadband fiber evolution

Thanks to impressive growth in its broadband subscriber base, the Asia-Pacific region is standing at the forefront of the fiber-to-the-home/node/business (FTTH/N/B) evolution, reveals a new report from In-Stat. Carriers such as Korea Telecom and NTT have committed to investing heavily to change copper infrastructures to fiber by 2010.

“The next-generation broadband access services strategy, as proven in markets like Japan, South Korea, and Hong Kong, is to focus on market proliferation of value-added broadband services, driven by the launch of compelling broadband content (i.e., IPTV and VoIP) and innovative broadband pricing plans,” explains In-Stat analyst Bryan Wang.

Also included in the report:

The total Asia-Pacific broadband access services market will exceed 225 million subscribers by 2011.

• In 2006, FTTX represented 9.5% of the total Asia-Pacific subscriber base.
• Japan and South Korea are the two markets that will see FTTX replacing existing xDSL subscriber connections by 2011.

In-Stat’s report, “Asia Pacific Broadband Market Update: DSL Still Takes the Lead,” contains forecasts for broadband subscribers and revenues, including segmentation by major country, through 2011. It includes analysis of market drivers and barriers and strategies by major vendors. Research covered under In-Stat’s Asia Multimedia Service extends from the most advanced markets, such as Japan and Korea, to the rapidly emerging markets including India and China. For more information, visit www.in-stat.com.