More than half of US consumers have shown interest in having all of the telecommunications provided by a single operator, according to research from J.D. Power and Associates. The survey found that 58% of subscribers to dial-up ISPs and high-speed net access have shown at least some interest in obtaining their internet access, telephone services and television from a single provider.
Twenty-two percent of dial-up subscribers and 27% high-speed subscribers are ‘extremely’ or ‘very likely’ to bundle all their telecommunications services if given the opportunity. Amongst dial-up subscribers who express interest in convergent services, local telephone service providers are mentioned most as the preferred provider (26%), followed closely by cable TV providers (24%).
Amongst the high-speed subscribers cable TV providers are mentioned most often as the preferred operators (44%), followed by local telephone service providers (17%) and ISPs (16%).
The implications of this desire for a convergence of telecommunications services could in lead in the medium-term future to the success of those telcoms companies that have the infrastructure to provide a bundle of services to the consumer. Traditionally and logistically the cable operators are best placed to capitalise on this trend. In the UK cable companies Telewest and NTL are already providing all of the services to customers.
The J.D. Power survey also showed that high-speed ISP subscriptions account for 13% of all residential ISP subscriptions in the United States. This penetration has increased significantly from 5% in 2000. Figures from NetProfit analysed by MediaTel Insight show US broadband penetration at 13.7%, or 14.4 million homes in 2001 (see Forecasts). Research from Nielsen//NetRatings puts the figure at 17.7 million homes – penetration of around 16.9% (see Forecasts).
| Broadband internet access in US homes, data comparisons |
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Number of homes (million) |
Penetration (%) |
| J.D. Power & Associates |
n/a |
13.0 |
| ACNielsen//NetRatings |
17.7 |
16.9 |
| NetProfit |
14.4 |
13.7 |
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| Source: as above, compiled by MediaTel Insight |
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The survey also says that among current dial-up subscribers, 10% say that they are ‘extremely’ or ‘very likely’ to switch to a DSL and/or cable modem connection (broadband) in the next six months. This concurs with the ACNielsen//NetRatings data which showed a 121% surge in broadband subscriptions year on year for July 2001 (see Forecasts).
| Internet Connection Speed Growth (US, home users) |
| |
|
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|
| |
Unique audience (000), July 2000 |
Unique audience (000) , July 2001 |
% Change |
| High speed* |
8,003 |
17,703 |
121 |
| Modem 56K |
49,666 |
64,290 |
29 |
| Modem 28.8/33.6K |
24,205 |
15,523 |
-36 |
| Modem 14.4K |
5,304 |
3,907 |
-26 |
| * includes ISDN, LAN, cable modem and DSL |
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| Source: Nielsen//NetRatings, July 2001 |
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High-speed subscribers tend to spend more time online than their dial-up counterparts, says JD, again echoing the findings of ACNielsen. On average, dial-up ISP respondents report personally spending about 13 hours per week online, with their household spending about 18 hours in aggregate. However, high-speed respondents report personally spending about 16 hours per week online, with others in their household spending about 23 hours per week.
