Domestic broadband customers 'using more residential gateways'

More residential gateways are being installed in properties worldwide as companies transition broadband customers away from purely DSL connections, reports In-Stat.

The analyst claims that fewer customers are being given DSL broadband modems as standard, instead being supplied with more fully featured residential gateways.

Part of the reason for this is the desire from some service providers to offer additional functionality - which could include integrated Wi-Fi networking and VoIP phones.

"The residential gateway market continues its global dominance over routers, due to telco providers' preference for gateways over modems - because gateways fulfil customer demand and promise greater revenue possibilities," says In-Stat industry analyst Vahid Dejwakh.

In 2011 alone, the company is now expecting shipments of the devices to break the 50 million unit threshold.

A recent report from In-Stat noted that corded VoIP phones are still more commonplace than wireless handsets in residential markets, with uptake driven largely by service providers' direct offerings to their customers.