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A Record 2.3 Million Add Broadband in First Quarter of 2004
Cable and DSL Split Quarterly Market Share
Durham, NH – May 11, 2004 – Leichtman Research Group, Inc. (LRG) found that the twenty largest cable and DSL providers in the US – representing about 98% of the market – added a combined total of over 2.34 million subscribers in the first quarter of 2004. Net broadband additions for the quarter were the largest ever, bringing the total number of high-speed Internet subscribers for the leading US cable and DSL providers to over 26.9 million at the end of the first quarter of 2004.
DSL providers had their best quarter ever with about 1.17 million net additions – a figure that exceeded the fourth quarter of 2003, the now second-best quarter for DSL net additions, by 300,000 subscribers. This surge in subscriber additions brought DSL to a virtual dead-heat with cable in terms of market share of net additions for the quarter, improving upon DSL’s fourth quarter 2003 market share of net additions of 45%.
Other key findings include:
- The top cable companies maintained a 6.4 million subscriber advantage over DSL, with cable now accounting for 16.67 million high-speed Internet subscribers compared to 10.26 million for DSL
- The top cable broadband providers now have a 62% share of the total market versus 38% for DSL – this is a slight change from a year ago when cable had 64% market share versus 36% for DSL
- Cable’s cumulative 1.17 million net additions in the quarter marked the sixth quarter out of the last seven that cable has achieved over one million net adds
“Over the past few quarters DSL providers have increased their focus on broadband with an emphasis on lower pricing. This message, along with extended availability of DSL, has clearly impacted consumer demand for DSL,” said Bruce Leichtman, president and principal analyst for Leichtman Research Group, Inc. “Thus far, it appears that DSL’s new found success has expanded the overall broadband market, rather than solely coming at the expense of cable’s growth.”
| Broadband Internet Provider |
Subscribers at end of Q1 2004 |
Net Adds in Q1 2004 |
| Cable |
| Comcast |
5,678,000 |
394,100 |
| Time Warner |
3,421,000 |
193,000 |
| Cox |
2,149,969 |
161,442 |
| Charter* |
1,653,000 |
125,200 |
| Cablevision |
1,128,930 |
71,910 |
| Adelphia** |
1,071,938 |
120,532 |
| Bright House Networks*** |
650,000 |
30,000 |
| Mediacom |
302,000 |
22,000 |
| Insight |
258,000 |
28,000 |
| RCN** |
208,000 |
10,457 |
| Cable One |
147,300 |
13,500 |
| Total Top Cable |
16,668,137 |
1,170,141 |
|
| DSL |
| SBC |
3,962,000 |
446,000 |
| Verizon |
2,664,000 |
345,000 |
| Bell South |
1,618,000 |
156,000 |
| Qwest |
774,000 |
107,000 |
| Covad*** |
545,000 |
28,000 |
| Sprint |
349,000 |
45,000 |
| ALLTEL |
174,489 |
21,461 |
| Cincinnati Bell |
110,000 |
11,000 |
| Century Tel |
97,092 |
13,692 |
| Total Top DSL |
10,263,581 |
1,173,153 |
|
| Total Broadband**** |
26,931,718 |
2,343,294 |
Sources: The Companies and Leichtman Research Group, Inc.
* Charter totals reflect the closing of sales of some systems
** Adelphia subscriber counts do not include properties owned by the Rigas family
*** Bright House Networks, RCN and Covad subscriber counts are estimates
**** Top cable and DSL providers represent approximately 98% of all subscribers
Company subscriber counts may not represent solely residential households
NOTE: On May 17, 2004, Covad released 1Q 2004 subscriber counts. This data, along with a revised estimate for RCN numbers based on the company's 10-Q release, can be found by clicking here for revised chart.
About Leichtman Research Group, Inc.
Leichtman Research Group, Inc. (LRG) specializes in research and consulting on the impact and adoption of broadband products and services. LRG combines on-going surveys and analysis with years of hands-on industry experience to provide companies with a richer understanding of the opportunities and challenges in today’s broadband market. For more information about LRG, please call (603) 397-5400 or visit www.LeichtmanResearch.com.
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