By Stewart Tongue

YNOT – The broadband market continues to grow, now encompassing 618.7 million subscribers, an increase of 7.3 percent over 2011. More than one-third of the world’s total households have a fixed broadband connection, according to a new study by ABI Research.

The study’s data indicate growth has occurred in each broadband platform, including DSL, cable and fiber-optic; however, slower growth in DSL subscribers indicates many of them are shifting to cable and fiber-optic lines.

“Development of next-generation broadband networks is creating opportunities to upgrade customers to fiber-optic,” said Jake Saunders, ABI’s vice president of core forecasting. “Fiber-optics broadband market-share is expected to increase to 13.2 percent from [2011’s] 12 percent, while DSL market share will decline nearly 1 percent, from 64 percent in 2011.”

North America enjoys the highest broadband penetration worldwide, with 72.4 percent of U.S. households using broadband services. Western Europe has nearly 72-percent penetration, but the consumer base is much smaller.

“As broadband operators upgrade their networks, customers are snapping up the faster services,” said ABI research analyst Khin Sandi Lynn. “At the end of [the second quarter] 2012, more than 44 percent of total customers subscribed to a broadband service of 10 Mbps and above.”

Of equal importance, according to Lynn, is that many longtime broadband subscribers are upgrading to faster tiers of connectivity.

From an adult content perspective, the increase in connectivity is likely to lead to a larger audience demand for large file sizes and better clarity.