Western European Voice Over Broadband Market Analysis, 2006 - 2010

Broadband access is now a mass market in Western Europe, with close to 30% of households in the region subscribing to broadband at the end of 2005. As the broadband market has become increasingly competitive due to the availability of wholesale DSL access, local loop unbundling, and in some countries a variety of broadband technologies, providers are now looking to applications offered over the broadband connection to increase their average revenue per customer (ARPU) and improve customer loyalty. Voice is one of the most prominent applications now available over broadband.

This study examines the prospects for voice over broadband (VoBB) across Europe. It examines the status of market development for each country. In addition, this study provides a country-by-country five-year forecast of broadband connections used for VoBB services and their revenue opportunity. These forecasts are segmented by broadband technology, end-user (consumer and business), and type of line (primary versus secondary line).

In this document, IDC considers only phone-based services offered by service providers. Do-it-yourself packages, as well as PC-to-PC-only services, are not covered in this document.

"Voice over broadband deployment in Western Europe will surge over the coming years," said Jan Hein Bakkers, research manager at IDC, "as increasing availability and end-user awareness, as well as a more aggressive approach by major operators, will drive market development."