Europe has overtaken the Americas in broadband internet connections for the first time, according to a new survey by TelecomPaper, and is now second, behind Asia/Pacific, which remained the world's biggest broadband market in 1Q05 with 61 million subscribers and 39 percent share, reports NetImperative. Europe was second with 47.95 million broadband subscribers, and the Americas region was third with 47.53 million. (However, the U.S. still has more broadband households than any other country, with 34.3 million.)

The survey found that net additions of broadband homes in Europe were greater than in the two other regions, growing around twice as fast. The Netherlands (21.1 percent of population) and Denmark (13.9 percent) led the growth in Europe, with both now close behind South Korea, where the increase in high-speed connections has begun to level off.