Fibre broadband uptake 'to double by 2016'

The number of businesses and consumers selecting fixed-line broadband services continues to grow, it has been claimed.

A study by ABI Research revealed that there were 539 million users with a fixed connection by the end of the second quarter, representing an eight per cent increase on the previous three month period.

The organisation believes the total number of fibre broadband customers will rise from 69.6 million today to 142 million worldwide by 2016.

Khin Sandi Lynn, research analyst at the body, said: "The Asia-Pacific broadband market is sure to continue growing in the medium-term since low broadband penetration in countries such as China and India leaves plenty of room for broadband growth."

According to the European Union's E-Communications Household Survey, one-quarter of consumers on the continent are not happy with the speed of their broadband connection, claiming it is slower than they were led to believe.

One-third claimed they had lost their connection at some point.