BPN 1031 Dutch broadband market grows to 5.59 mln, fuelled by cable

For the first time since 2002, Dutch cable internet operators added more new broadband customers than ADSL ISPs. The cable internet providers sold two times as many subscriptions as the ADSL providers during the fourth quarter of 2007, according to Telecompaper's quarterly report about the Dutch broadband market. The Dutch broadband market grew by 10.8 percent during 2007 to end the year with 5.588 million connections. During the fourth quarter the entire broadband market grew by 2.9 percent or 159,200 net additions.

Key figures Dutch broadband market
Total broadband connections: 5.588 million
Of which FTTH: 72.085
Penetration households: 77.7 per cent (+ FTTH 78.99 per cent)
Annual growth 2007: 10.8 per cent
Annual growth 2008 (forecast): 7 per cent

Broadband (cable and ADSL) penetration per household increased to 77.7 percent at the end of last year, growing by 7.1 points compared with the end of 2006. When including FTTH (fibre-to-the-home), the household penetration reached 78.99 percent. Penetration per 100 inhabitants increased to 34.1 percent on 31 December 2007, compared with 30.8 percent on 31 December 2006, and when including the FTTH connections the penetration per 100 inhabitants amounted to 34.6 percent on 31 December 2007. Zesko (@Home, Casema, Multikabel), excluding Orange broadband cable users, saw its customer base grow by 93,000 net additions during the fourth quarter to reach 1.268 million broadband customers on 31 December. The second largest broadband ISP continues to be Het Net with 643,000 DSL users at the end of the quarter, after adding 14,000 customers in Q4. UPC is closing the gap with Het Net with 15,800 net additions in the fourth quarter, taking its total to 640,300 broadband customers on 31 December 2007. Tele2 continued to grow faster than the market average, with 22,000 new DSL customers during the quarter and passing the 300,000 users mark to end the year with 303,000. Its share of the broadband market grew to 5.4 percent, overtaking XS4ALL to become the sixth largest broadband ISP in the Netherlands.

Telecompaper forecasts a slower growth for 2008 as the market becomes saturated and the interest for broadband and Voip decreases. The market research institute expects that the broadband market will grow with 7 per cent in 2008, bringing the total of broadband connections to 6 million.

Blog Posting Number: 1031

Tags: broadband, FTTH