Lower Prices and Bundling Will Bring Broadband to 78 Million US Homes by 2010 -- After years of dominating the US market, cable operator's share of broadband Internet customers will decline steadily over the next five years, according to Strategy Analytics. Their report notes that although cable remains the leading broadband platform in the US, its share of the total base of broadband users fell from 62 to 59 percent in 2004. By the end of 2005, Strategy Analytics predicts that cable's share will slip to 57 percent, while share for telcos offering DSL and fiber services will grow from 39 to 41 percent. The combination of falling prices and multi-service bundles combining TV, telephony and high-speed Internet services will drive overall adoption of broadband sharply upward over the next five years. By 2010, the report predicts that nearly 78 million US customers will use some type of broadband service. Cable operators will account for about half of that total, while telcos will serve 43 percent of subscribers through a combination of DSL and advanced fiber networks. Meanwhile, SBC, Verizon and other telcos are using aggressive price cuts to maintain subscriber growth in DSL.
There is a pivotal shift within the global smartphone market. Recent data from IDC highlights a more cautious outlook for 2025, with projected worldwide smartphone shipments seeing a significantly reduced growth rate. This revised forecast underscores the intricate interplay of global economic factors and geopolitical dynamics on pervasive personal communication devices. IDC's latest update projects a mere 0.6 percent growth in worldwide smartphone shipments for 2025, a stark reduction from the earlier 2.3 percent expectation. Global Smartphone Market Development This recalibration is largely attributed to prevailing economic uncertainties, including inflationary pressures and rising unemployment, alongside the persistent specter of tariff volatility. Despite these global tensions, it's interesting to note that the United States and China are still identified as the primary drivers of this modest growth. China, a critical market, is forecast to achieve a 3 percent year-over-yea...