Think Mobile Broadband is Replacing Cable? It’s Not
Right now there is concern rising throughout the cable industry that wireless broadband is slowly replacing fixed broadband. In many locations, for instance, wireless broadband speeds are steadily increasing, and the belief is that, as we approach the 5G era, these services will replace the need for cable services.
Is this something you should worry about as a cable operator? Keep the issue on your radar, but it may not be as worrisome as it seems.
As explained in a recent CED article, a new study from Strategy Analytics shows that cable operators added 3.3 million new subscribers between April 2015 and March 2016. In doing so, cable operators increased total fixed broadband household penetration to about 80 percent.
What’s more, cable’s market share for broadband subscriptions increased to over 62 percent. Fiber, by comparison, remained at 23 percent and DSL fell to 15 percent. According to the director of service provider strategies at Strategy Analytics, Jason Blackwell, this growth is being driven by multiplay bundles and increased network speeds.
This begs the question: What can we expect to see from cable operators moving forward? According to Strategy Analytics, look for more Wi-Fi deployments.
“Wi-Fi will allow cable operators to more effectively compete for quad-play customers without the expense of creating and managing a mobile network,” Blackwell stated. “Combined with MVNO relationships, Wi-Fi can create a compelling service offer, making the cable companies more competitive with the traditional mobile operators.”
What’s your take on the competition between mobile and fixed broadband? We want to hear from you!
September 27, 2016 @ 8:33 am
Ultimately, cable broadband may go the route of the landline phone, assuming the carriers remove or raise the very limiting data caps on mobile broadband. If they don’t, then just like now, people will continue to search out wifi hotspots, so they don’t suffer thru expensive data overages on their mobile service. The larger MSOs know this, which is why they’re moving into the mobile space. Doesn’t matter how fast and convenient the mobile service is if you get hit with a higher bill for not having essentially unlimited data on your landline broadband service. On the residential side, there may be tendency to drop wireline service as people do the numbers and no longer want to pay for both a landline Internet connection *and* wireless broadband, but the commercial side continues to be the strong growth area. Just like commercial businesses still have desk phones, they’ll install top notch fiber infrastructure to support their business applications. And more than likely have dual providers for increased availability. Just my two cents, but it’s already happening… History has a way of repeating itself.