The magic of fiber optics

Worldwide broadband subscriptions will exceed 536 million by 2011, with DSL accounting for over half of the market, and Fiber (FTTx) and WiMax among the fastest-growing access technologies in the next five years, according to a new report by Strategy Analytics, "Worldwide Broadband Subscription Forecasts, 2007-2011," MarketingCharts reports.

(Broadband revenue - led by Europe, Asia Pacific and North America - will exceed $150 billion in 2011, Telecommunications Online writes, quoting the Strategy Analytics report.)

Worldwide broadband subscriptions will exceed 330 million in 2007, with DSL accounting for over two-thirds, the research firm forecast.

"Ambitious fiber rollouts in the US by Verizon and AT&T, and in Europe by French operator Free, will bring overall FTT(x) subscriptions to 64 million by 2011," said Ben Piper, director of the Strategy Analytics Broadband Network Strategies Service.

That means fiber would grow to constitute nearly 12 percent of the total by 2011.

FWA/WiMax deployments are also expected to experience an impressive growth trajectory over the next five years, with an 88 percent CAGR, Strategy Analytics said.

Broadband Service revenues will surpass $150 billion in 2011, with Europe, Asia Pacific and North America leading the way - a 13 percent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) between 2007 and 2011, according to Strategy Analytics.