Digital Lifescapes

Telecom and pay TV providers are entering a period where traditional connectivity revenue is growing at well under 2 percent a year worldwide, even as traffic volumes, quality expectations, and competitive pressures continue to rise. This widening gap between flat service revenues and escalating investment needs is the central strategic challenge now confronting network operators, tech vendors, and investors across the communications value chain. This transitional environment forces service providers to pivot from "grow by adding lines" to "grow by monetizing experiences, insights, and ecosystems." Enterprise digital transformation, 5G, fiber, and cloud computing are all necessary enablers, but none of them automatically translate into higher ARPU or margin; they need to be coupled with new value propositions and operating models. Telecom and Cable Market Development According to the latest IDC market study, worldwide spending on telecom and pay TV services is expec...

The demand for high-performance connectivity is reaching new highs in the 5G wireless era. Annual data traffic from the top 30 countries is forecast to grow from almost 1,100 exabytes in 2022 to over 4,000 exabytes in 2027 -- with 5G making up ~60 percent of total data traffic in 2027. Based on the higher data throughput and lower latency required by 5G networks, backhaul or transport solutions must also adapt to meet the increased requirements needed by advanced cellular technology. While fiber-optic links remain a preferred choice for 5G network backhaul, microwave technology is still seen as a key component in many 5G networks due to its lower deployment costs and ability to be deployed in areas where fiber deployment is difficult. Wireless Backhaul Market Development Additionally, wireless backhaul deployments can also be used to complement fiber backhaul deployments by providing increased resiliency. According to the latest worldwide market study by ABI Research, the total number ...

The worldwide Optical networking infrastructure market is predicted to grow from $13.6 billion in 2016 to $17.3 billion by 2021, according to the latest market study by ACG Research. Moreover, purchases of Optical Data Center Interconnect (DCI) equipment are expected to grow from $1.69 billion in 2016 to $4.3 billion in 2021. And, there's growth in all geographic regions. In 2016, Metro optical increased 5.5 percent and Long-Haul delivered 10.5 percent growth. Asia-Pacific remains the largest optical networking region, with 10 percent growth in spending in 2016. Driven in part by Verizon network upgrades, the North American Metro Optical market will return to growth in 2017 after a slow 2016. Optical Networking Market Development ACG Research analysts anticipate worldwide Metro Optical spending to increase 9.4 percent in 2017. When combined with the 19.1 percent decline in legacy Optical infrastructure spending in 2016, total Optical infrastructure managed a modest 2.7 perce...

Telecom service providers have been seeking new, less capital-intensive, ways to deliver broadband Internet access to homes. Advances in fixed wireless communications will create opportunities to reach new subscribers. Exponential growth of 4G LTE coverage and capacity is driving wireless service growth for fixed broadband access, while fiber-to-the-home (FTTH), xDSL, and cable technologies reach nearly 50 percent of global households. As the 5G standardization process approaches completion, the technology will significantly accelerate global fixed wireless deployments. The results, so far, from new service tests and trials have been encouraging. Wireless Broadband Market Development ABI Research forecasts worldwide fixed wireless broadband subscribers will grow at a 30 percent CAGR to top 151 million in 2022. "The arrival of 5G technology will completely transform fixed wireless broadband network deployments," said Khin Sandi Lynn, analyst at ABI Research . Recen...

According to the latest market study by Technology Business Research (TBR), most of the growth for telecom vendors is coming from China during the third quarter of 2015 (3Q15), where network operators are deploying 4G LTE, optical fiber, fixed-access and IP equipment. More growth is also coming from infrastructure deployment in India, where there is selective 4G LTE investment as well as 3G mobile network build-outs and managed services deals. This Capex spend is fueling growth for vendors entrenched firmly in those markets -- particularly Huawei and ZTE in China, and Ericsson in India. "LTE investment in China continued to drive Huawei's peer-leading telecom revenue as well as strong growth for ZTE,” said Michael Soper, telecom analyst at TBR . Outside of China, network operator spending is variable, reflecting the impact of post-peak LTE spend in North America, Japan and South Korea and economic issues in certain emerging markets, such as the Caribbean and Latin Americ...

Government leaders in nations that seek to prosper in the Global Network Economy must ensure that they have the broadband internet access infrastructure that enables them to compete -- technology capabilities and retail price -- with the recognized market leaders around the world. Incumbent telecom service providers typically set the pace of infrastructure investment. However, broadband capabilities sometimes don't keep up with market demand and a stimulus is required. In the U.S. market that provocation came from the launch of Google Fiber deployments. In the UK market, the government regulator, Ofcom , has provided the catalyst for progress. One of the keys to economic growth in the 21st Century is access to adequate telecom networks. Raising Expectations for UK Broadband The UK will outperform other major European countries on a range of fixed telecoms measures for the next five years, and become one of the best performing countries worldwide by 2020, according to the l...

Traditional wireline communication investment has stagnated in numerous developed markets around the globe, but there's still some upside opportunity for new infrastructure deployment within the emerging markets. Case in point: the number of fixed lines for voice and Internet services in Latin America will reach 163.8 million in 2015, that's an increase of 2.3 percent over 2014 deployments, according to the latest market study by Pyramid Research. This represents a broadband penetration rate of just 12 percent and a voice telephony penetration rate of 17 percent of the population. Clearly, the forward-looking growth potential is still significant. While the overall number of fixed lines will grow at a CAGR of 2.1 percent, fiber-to-the-home or business (FTTH/B) connections will increase at a CAGR of 34.9 percent over the next five years. "Growth within fixed communications markets will be mainly driven by the increase in broadband lines," said Marcelo Kawanami,...

Fiber-optic communications infrastructure is an economic catalyst within the developed regions of the world. In North America, Google Fiber is slowly entering new markets -- such as San Antonio , Texas -- but these deployments are a relatively small part of this broadband network evolution story. Worldwide broadband customer premise equipment (CPE) shipments are expected to reach 153.6 million by the end of 2015, according to the latest market study by ABI Research. "Fiber-optic broadband CPE device shipments are expected to increase 12 percent in 2015 although DSL and cable CPE device markets are likely to see a slight decline in total shipments," comments Jake Saunders, VP and practice director at ABI Research . Since wireline broadband network operators continue to upgrade their networks, the rate of consumer migration to more advanced broadband platforms is increasing -- even if it's slowly in most regions. The increasing fiber-optic broadband subscriber base ...

The number of European households within a reach of high-speed broadband of at least 30 Mbps download speeds reached 62 percent of EU homes at the end of 2013, according to a new market study by IHS. The study, sponsored by the European Commission (EC), also shows that 4G LTE wireless coverage across Europe recorded a dramatic 32 percent increase in 2013. One of the main goals of the "Digital Agenda for Europe" is a universal high-speed (at least 30 Mbps download) broadband coverage across the EU by 2020. "According to our research, challenges remain in passing this target, with rural Next Generation Access (NGA) coverage continuing to be especially problematic," said Alzbeta Fellenbaum, senior analyst at IHS . Only 18.1 percent of EU rural homes had access to NGA broadband at the end of 2013. While this represents a considerable improvement by nearly six percentage points compared to 2012, a lot remains to be done if universal NGA coverage is to be achieved...

The device that broadband service providers place in a subscriber's home could be a point of differentiation, but most are basically alike. The vendors merely attempt to reach parity with the stated industry standard requirements. The products are often procured based upon the lowest price. It's surprising that there is no start-up company that's truly attempting to disrupt this product category. Surely, the service providers would notice if anyone created some meaningful and substantive innovation. Telecom and cable companies have said that they crave vendors that offer new ideas. Worldwide broadband customer premise equipment (CPE) shipments are expected to reach 151.9 million by the end of 2014, according to the latest worldwide market study by ABI Research. "The residential gateway segment continues to grow at a rapid pace. We expect global shipments will grow more than 9 percent in 2014," said Jake Saunders, VP and practice director at ABI Research . ...

Telecom and Cable TV broadband service providers have continued to invest in their infrastructure during 2013. Broadband customer premise equipment (CPE) shipments at the end of 2013 were expected to surpass 147 million units, according to the latest global market study by ABI Research. The CPE devices counted include broadband modems, wired routers, and home gateways. Despite a growing broadband subscriber base and increasing demand for advanced broadband services, broadband CPE shipments are only expected to grow to 150 million in 2014. "Increasing adoption of fiber-optic broadband services is driving the growth of fiber-optic CPE shipments," said Jake Saunders, VP and practice director at ABI Research . Fiber-optic CPE will represent 26 percent of overall broadband CPE shipped in 2014. Cable and DSL CPE devices will have equal market share of around 37 percent. As cable broadband operators rapidly extend to DOCSIS 3.0 networks, related DOCSIS CPE shipment is gainin...

The global wired broadband market -- including DSL, cable, and fiber-optic services -- generated $188 billion service revenue in 2012, that's a 7 percent increase from 2011. According to the latest market study by ABI Research, fixed broadband service revenue will grow to $251 billion by 2018. Across the globe in 2012, fiber-optic broadband service revenue had its strongest year-over-year growth of 24 percent, while DSL and cable broadband grew 2 percent and 6 percent respectively. Fiber to the home (FTTH) is expected to grow stronger than other platforms throughout the forecast period. In 2018, FTTH revenue should reach $81.6 billion, generating almost one-third of global broadband service revenue. Globally, overall broadband average revenue per user (ARPU) has continued to decline across all broadband platforms over the past few years. In some nations, consumers are getting more and paying less. "The trend is expected to endure as the majority of network operators ...

Infonetics Research released excerpts from its latest market study of broadband service provider Residential Gateways. These are the broadband network access devices that are provided by the operator and installed in the service subscriber's home. Their insightful report delves into the service provider strategies for deploying and pricing residential gateways, the applications driving their deployments -- and their top picks for residential gateway vendors, services, technologies, and associated features. "With residential gateway revenue dropping because of price declines and a saturated broadband subscriber base, operators are looking to new services to increase revenue per subscriber," said Jeff Heynen, directing analyst for broadband access and video at Infonetics Research . Based upon recent interviews with network operators around the world, it is clear that they see their broadband access lines (be they DSL, cable, or FTTH) as a conduit for new revenue-gener...

The next generation of consumer electronics (CE) devices has made mobile connectivity a key focal point. Mobile phones are something of a gateway device -- enabling consumers to select the most interesting mobile content. Between mobile applications, data, voice, and video, global wireless bandwidth usage has increased ten-fold since 2008, and there are no signs of it slowing. The process by which these consumer electronic devices communicate with the content source is called backhaul. According to the latest NPD In-Stat market study, they now forecast that the number of fiber-enabled mobile service backhaul macro base stations will approach 1.8 million in 2014. "For mobile operators the challenge is to match the best backhaul solutions with the needs of their networks. In tailoring the proper backhaul solution, operators have to balance considerations like cost and time of deployment," said Chris Kissel, Senior Analyst at NPD In-Stat . At the same time, operators m...

The UK superfast broadband arena finally has some new players. They're focused on building fiber networks in places that desperately need it. This was encouraging news for the British government and digital industry stakeholders that gathered for the recent NextGen 11 conference in Bristol. "Our regular survey of alternative superfast infrastructure projects shows a second wave of players with new money entering the market," says Annelise Berendt, Senior Analyst at Point Topic . "While BT's plan to increase the pace of its next-generation network rollout, Virgin Media's 100Mbps network upgrade and Fujitsu's challenge for government money are well known, they are joined by several smaller players who have persuaded financiers to put up cash." These new players include CityFibre, Gigaclear, Call Flow Solutions and Hypnotic. "Meanwhile, Kingston Communications, the incumbent in Hull, has begun upgrading areas of its network for fibre-based s...

Infonetics Research released excerpts from its latest global market study of the telecom service provider sector, which analyzes capital expenditures (capex), operational expenses (opex), revenue per user, and subscriber trends by network operator, operator type, region, and telecom equipment segment. Overall, the 6 percent increase in global telecom carrier capex in 2011 over 2010 is due in large part to the AT&T ramping 4G LTE wireless network deployments, HSPA+ upgrades, and investments in Wi-Fi hotspots for traffic offload. The AT&T increase somewhat offsets the Verizon Wireless slowing of mobile infrastructure spending -- since their 4G LTE deployment peaked earlier this year. In the EMEA region, a capex hike in Africa is partially offsetting delays in telecom investment in Greece, Italy, and Hungary. Asia Pacific remains stable, and in the Caribbean and Latin America (CALA), America Movil and Telefonica -- the two telecom giants that control 75 percent of mobil...

Preparations for the London 2012 Olympics includes plans for broadband infrastructure upgrades across the UK. Coverage of the sporting events will create a multitude of digital media content, but the ultimate legacy will be a platform for long-term socioeconomic development within the nation. Point Topic predicts there will be over 10.5 million superfast broadband lines in Britain within the next five years. With another 4.6 million cable broadband connections this means that almost 60 percent of broadband customers -- and more than half of all homes and businesses -- will be using superfast speeds of 30 megabits or more by the end of 2016. "It's still a risky and controversial forecast," says Tim Johnson, Chief Analyst at Point Topic. "It is always difficult to predict something which is expected to grow so fast. If the forecast is correct, the number of superfast lines will grow 50 times over between mid-2011 and the end of 2016." But there's unce...

There are people in developed nations who simply don't want broadband access to the Internet -- clearly, they're now in the minority. Increasingly the most significant barrier to further broadband adoption around the world is affordability -- or the lack thereof. Now leaders across the telecom sector are working together to bring broadband services into the reach of the digitally deprived, according to the latest market study by Point Topic . With superfast broadband solutions finally reaching the marketplace, it is more important that infrastructure suppliers are able to align their network offerings -- and service providers implement delivery solutions -- that are cost effective. Standards are core to the effort says Point Topic CEO Oliver Johnson. "The next wave of broadband, commonly entitled Superfast, is gathering momentum." With more than half a billion fixed lines already in use and many markets extending the reach of fixed broadband across thei...

Some view mobile broadband services as inferior offerings -- due mostly to the low-speed connections and inconsistent coverage. That said, it's often the only available broadband option for many rural locations, and a welcomed additional option to other Internet users around the world. Infonetics Research recently released excerpts from its latest fixed wireline and mobile broadband subscribers market forecast report. The global market has reached a significant new milestone. "As we predicted, mobile broadband subscribers surpassed wireline broadband subscribers in 2010 -- 558 million vs. 500 million," says Stefane Teral, Infonetics Research's principal analyst for mobile and FMC infrastructure. Fixed-line services are not dead, though, especially with China giving a boost to the worldwide wireline broadband base with its massive fiber-based program led by the Chinese government, which has set a 20Mbps benchmark for all broadband subscribers -- where most today...

The broadband Internet access market is gaining momentum in Britain, with the total number of superfast lines delivering speeds in excess of 25Mbps set to pass the 250,000 mark this April - according to the latest market study by Point Topic. Point Topic's Chief Analyst, Tim Johnson, says the number is still quite modest -- currently only 1 percent of homes in Britain -- it does mean that superfast broadband could be in a position to follow in the footsteps of first-generation broadband that was deployed 10 years ago. "We went on from there to reach over 13 million broadband lines within five years," he said. "Now we have over 19 million. It's dangerous just to assume that history will repeat itself -- but it's still a good pointer to what will happen to superfast broadband in this decade." Point Topic's estimates for the current penetration are based on its market data from the end of 2010. These show there were 175,000 superfast broadband lin...