Global DSL Lines Top 30 Million

Research carried out in the first half of the year found that there were 25 million DSL lines across the globe (see Global DSL Growth Hits 35% In H1, Despite Sector’s Financial Troubles). However, there has since been strong growth in North America and the Far East to the extent that by the end of September, there were 30.6 million lines worldwide.

DSL lines are generally a good indication of the level of broadband adoption in a particular country. South Korea has more than six million lines but the US is gaining ground and is expected to take over as world number one by the end of 2002.

The most significant growth is occurring in China where the number of lines trebled in the third quarter. With a population of 1.3 billion and a promising infrastructure, it is inevitable that the country will ultimately rise to the top of the broadband standings. However, with 12.7 digital subscriber lines per 100 people, South Korea remains a clear leader in terms of penetration.

Most of the G7 countries appear in the top ten shown below. The exception is the UK which was initially slow in gravitating towards high-speed services. However, the telecoms regulator, Oftel estimates that new broadband connections now total 28,000 per week (see UK Gaining Ground In Broadband Arena) and the country now ranks thirteenth in terms of the number of DSL lines. It is worth noting that the UK, like the US and Canada, has a large proportion of cable modems, which Point Topic does not currently measure.

Top Countries In Number Of DSL Lines
Rank	Country	No. of Lines (000s)	Lines Per 100 Population
1	South Korea	6076.2	12.7
2	US	5837.6	2.0
3	Japan	4223.2	3.3
4	Germany	2800.0	3.4
5	China	2220.0	0.2
6	Taiwan	1630.0	7.3
7	Canada	1462.1	4.7
8	France	882.0	1.5
9	Spain	747.8	1.8
10	Italy	700.4	1.2
13	UK	419.4	0.7
Source: Point Topic, December 2002