Johannesburg, 28 Jun 2001
The worldwide cable modem market experienced growth surge in 2000. IDC reports cable modem subscriptions jumped almost 178% to 7.2 million while equipment revenue grew 122%. And the surge is far from over. IDC forecasts the number of subscribers will increase more than eight times to 57.5 million by 2005.
"Work-at-home employees and power Internet users sparked demand for cable modems in the residential market," said Amy Harris, program manager with IDC`s Broadband Markets and Technologies program. "Future growth will be driven by the prevalence of image-rich and video-rich applications on the Internet."
In 2000, the number of US cable modem subscribers grew 171% to 3.8 million more than three times as many as any other region and representing 53% of the worldwide market. However, during the next few years, cable modems will begin to lose ground to DSL, and US share of worldwide subscribers will fall to 36%.
Meanwhile, cable modem use in Western Europe will significantly pick up. From 1 million in 2000, Western European cable modem subscriptions will soar to almost 17.7 million in 2005. During this time frame, Western Europe`s share of worldwide subscribers will soar from 14% to 31%.
"Industry consolidation and the increasing availability of broadband content are driving the roll-out of cable modems in Western Europe," Harris said.
Despite the growth expected in the worldwide subscription base, IDC believes cable modems will have to confront a number of issues, including scaling problems, installation and provisioning challenges, and challenges from other broadband technologies.
"To attract and retain customers, cable modem services must be reliable, the installation process must be fast and easy, and pricing must be compelling and competitive with other broadband services pricing," said Brad Baldwin, director of IDC`s Broadband Markets and Technologies research.
IDC recently published Worldwide Cable Modem Equipment and Services Market Analysis and Forecast, 2000/2005 (IDC #B24243). This bulletin forecasts worldwide cable modem service subscriptions, new subscriptions, equipment revenue, and service revenue by region. Additionally, the bulletin forecasts and compares the number of Internet households and cable modem households. US forecasts are segmented by residential and small business markets.
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