In-Stat/MDR Reports VoIP Services Lag, But Cable Telephony Subscribers Continue to Increase

Business Wire, Oct 16, 2002

Business Editors, High-Tech Writers

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 16, 2002

With both increasing consumer demand for cable voice services and decreasing operator deployment costs, cable telephony has a solid future, according to In-Stat/MDR (http://www.instat.com). The high-tech market research firm reports that as cable TV operators around the globe have upgraded their hybrid fiber coaxial infrastructure, cable telephony services have become widely available in North America and Western Europe, and as of mid-2002, there were almost 8 million worldwide subscribers. In addition, total worldwide cable telephony service revenues are expected to rise from $3 billion in 2002 to over $7.5 billion in 2006.

However, cable telephony faces some stiff challenges as operators continue to scale their voice services. "Even with the modest success of cable telephony, the worldwide cable industry is in no position to rest on its laurels," said Mike Paxton, a senior analyst with In-Stat/MDR. "The industry is experiencing competitive threats from alternative telephony services, less-than-friendly regulatory environments, a global economic slow-down, and numerous marketing and technical hurdles that come with the introduction of voice services." Even in the midst of these challenges, most cable operators in North America and Europe remain committed to adding cable telephony service to their existing service portfolios.

In-Stat/MDR also reports that:

-- Cable operators like AT&T Broadband, NTL, and Telewest already serve a million cable telephony subscribers each.

-- The first small-scale IP-based cable telephony services are expected to become available in North America and Europe in 2003.

-- Total worldwide cable telephony subscribers are forecasted to grow from 8.6 million at the end of 2002 to over 22 million by 2006.

The report, "VoIP Services Lag, But Cable Telephony Subscribers Continue to Increase" (#IN020028MB), examines and updates cable telephony services provided by cable television operators in the United States and around the world. It covers market and industry drivers for cable telephony, examines network architectures, and discusses existing technology standards. The report focuses closely on the transition from circuit-switched cable telephony services to Internet Protocol-based voice services and also provides forecasts for worldwide cable telephony subscribers, IP cable telephony subscribers, worldwide installed cable telephony lines through the year 2006, and cable telephony service revenues for the next five years. In addition, the report presents the results of two recent surveys. One survey covers U.S. cable operator plans to provision cable telephony over the next two years, and the other presents the results of a U.S. consumer survey, offering a snapshot of current residential telephony subscribers.

To purchase this report, or for more information, please visit: http://www.instat.com/catalog/cat-dt.htm or contact Courtney McEuen at 480/609-4533; cmceuen@reedbusiness.com. The report price is $2,995.

About In-Stat/MDR

In-Stat/MDR (http://www.instat.com) offers a broad range of information resources and analytical assets to technology vendors, service providers, technology professionals, and market specialists worldwide. The company stands alone in its ability to integrate both supply-side and demand-side research methodologies into a single comprehensive view of technology markets and products. This capability relies on a unique ability to cover the entire value chain from engineering-level technology, through equipment, infrastructure, services and end users.

In-Stat/MDR is part of the Reed Electronics Group, a division of Reed Elsevier (www.reedelsevier.com), a world-leading publisher and information provider. With over 38,000 employees worldwide, Reed Elsevier operates in the science & medical, legal, education and business-to-business industry sectors, providing high value and flexible information solutions to professional end users, with increasing emphasis on the Internet.