UK Broadband Subscriptions Grind To A Halt

The growth of broadband subscriptions in UK has slowed down dismally to just 0.5 percent in the third quarter this year, according to a new research study.

A research study from Deloitte revealed that the adoption of new digital services and technology has stagnated this year, with digital radio resting among the hardest hit services that registered a nominal rise of 1 percent, as compared to 5 percent growth rate over the year.

Citing the reduction in growth, Howard Davies, Deloitte’s technology, media and telecoms partner, said in a statement, “In straitened times, and with penetration levels of many gadgets already high, most “replacement” or “upgrade” purchases may be given a second thought”.

However, the decline in growth of digital products and gadgets is temporary, as these gadgets have turned out to be integral part for people’s lives in modern world, Davies added. 

The company further stated that such poor growth rate “should not be unexpected” with the global economy going tailspin. 

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Despite poor growth report, Ofcom has mentioned that the number of broadband connections in UK has reached an all time high, with the quarterly figures of the organisation registered 16.6 million connections during the second quarter of this year, as against 14.38 million in same period for 2007. 

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Our Comments

The fact that broadband subscription growth has slowed down to near zero was expected. Broadband is now a fully mature technology and zero growth does not mean that broadband lines are not being sold, it just means that there's no substantial increase in the number of subscribers. It will be interesting to find out how mobile broadband fared in the last few months of 2008.

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