Broadband Users in Asia To Reach 171 Million in '08

The number of broadband subscribers across the Asia-Pacific region increased 31.5% from last year to 170 million in 2007, and is expected to reach 171 million by the end of 2008. Researchers suggest this number will continue to grow at a rate of 19.9% annually through the year 2013 where it should nearly hit 322 million.

How does this calculate into monetary terms? In 2007, broadband revenue reached US$28.1 billion!

There appear to be three main factors contributing to the enormous growth in the broadband market for the Asia-Pacific region. First, the increasing popularity and demand for services such as video-on-demand, video sharing, online multi-player games, and social networking sites such as Facebook and You Tube. Second, broadband operators have been promoting and improving their services aggressively by offering cheaper product-service bundles, providing applications such as Internet Protocol TV. And lastly, there have been numerous government-led initiatives introduced throughout the region, but especially in the most developed economies, that push for the adoption of broadband service and development of its local content and applications through advanced infrastructure.