• by Ken Liebeskind , July 22, 2002

There’s been a lot of talk about the slow growth of broadband, but there is some growth to report.

Today, In-Stat/MDR, a high tech information resources company, reports that at the beginning of this year the number of worldwide broadband subscribers has surpassed 30 million. By the end of this year, there will be 46 million subscribers.

The growth of broadband is fuelled by the two major technologies, DSL and cable modem, which continue to battle it out for supremacy. According to In Stat/MDR, DSL is leading the way internationally, but cable is first in the US.

Growth is strongest among residential users, with cable companies selling to cable tv customers and ignoring the business market, which doesn’t buy cable tv service. Meanwhile, DSL, a phone based service, has made some inroads into the business community, while providing residential customers with self installation kits. The cable industry also offers a “Triple Play” package of voice, video and high-speed Internet access that DSL providers can’t match, the report says.

The report also says DSL surpassed cable last year with more than 17 million subscribers, thanks to a sharp rise in the Asia Pacific region. But in the U.S. cable modem leads the way with 7.1 million subscribers versus 4.6 million for DSL.

Other broadband technologies, such as satellite and fixed wireless, are small players with only five percent of the subscribers worldwide.