Survey Indicates FTTH Leads Other Broadband Services in Bandwidth Value, Consumer Satisfaction
(WASHINGTON) - Subscribers to fiber to the home (FTTH) services get considerably more bandwidth for the buck than those who receive their Internet and video services through cable or DSL, according to a new report commissioned by the Fiber-to-the-Home Council.
The survey of more than 2,000 broadband subscribers, drawn randomly from a nationally balanced panel of more than 3.2 million consumers by the market research firm RVA LLC, also found that overall satisfaction among FTTH users continues to lead that of other broadband subscribers, with those answering "very satisfied" at 74 percent - up from 71 percent a year ago - compared to 54 percent for cable users and 51 percent for DSL.
With regard to cost of service relative to download connection speed, the RVA survey results showed FTTH subscribers paying $2.91 a month per megabit of bandwidth, compared to $3.83 for cable subscribers, $16.40 for DSL, and $49.38 per megabit for fixed wireless services.
Download a copy of the survey charts here.
As of April 2011, fiber to the home services were available to more than 18 percent of North American homes and were connected to more than seven million of them. RVA estimates that there are now 170,000 North American households receiving FTTH service with connection speeds of at least 100 megabits per second, and a total of 347,000 receiving 50 Mbps service. Both of these figures were more than double those from last year's survey report.
With regard to consumer-tested download speeds, FTTH households continue to outpace subscribers of other services, with average speeds now at 19.7 Mbps - up from 16.6 Mbps in last year's survey - compared to an average 13.3 Mbps for cable households and 2.9 Mbps for DSL. On upload performance, the relative gap between FTTH and cable modem was wider, with FTTH subscribers averaging 5.4 Mbps and cable subs averaging 2.7 Mbps, with 0.7 Mbps average upload speed for DSL.
"This year's survey shows that end-to-end fiber services are extending their lead over other broadband technologies in speed, value and customer satisfaction," said Dan O'Connell, President of the FTTH Council. "We expect this trend will continue as bandwidth requirements for the latest video and other applications continue to accelerate, and growing numbers of consumers expect to be able to access them through their telecommunications providers."
The RVA survey continued to find popularity of FTTH services among people who work from home, with FTTH subscribers reporting working an average 1.2 days per month more from their homes than cable subs, and home-based businesses in FTTH households showing significantly higher annual revenues than those in households using other types of broadband - an estimated $54,891. Based on this and on typical take-rates for fiber to the home services, RVA estimates that FTTH communities see an influx of $500,000 in home-based business revenues for every 1,000 homes passed.
About the Fiber-to-the-Home Council
Now in its tenth year, the Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) Council is a non-profit association consisting of companies and organizations that deliver video, Internet and/or voice services over high-bandwidth, next-generation, direct fiber optic connections - as well as those involved in planning and building FTTH networks. The Council works to create a cohesive group to share knowledge and build industry consensus on key issues surrounding fiber to the home. Its mission is to educate the public and government officials about FTTH solutions and to promote and accelerate deployment of fiber to the home and the resulting quality of life enhancements such networks make possible. The Council organizes North America's largest annual FTTH event, the FTTH Conference & Expo, which will be held September 26 - 30, 2011 in Orlando, Florida. More information about the Council can be found at www.ftthcouncil.org.
Media Contact:
David St. John
Media Relations
FTTH Council
315.849.3800
media@ftthcouncil.org