“Growth perspectives remain high,” says Jean-Luc Lemmens, Head of Telecom Unit at IDATE DigiWorld. “In June 2017, superfast technologies represented 48% of broadband access subscriptions, an increase of 9 points over the previous year. FTTH/B represented 68% of FTTx subscriptions. Growth of FTTH/B subscriptions is expected to continue until 2021 at an annual average rate of around 10%, although the pace will drop as markets mature.” By 2021, the share of FTTH/B subscriptions will represent 39% of the total global broadband market.”

Looking at developments across different regions, APAC remains at the forefront of the FTTH/B market and FTTH/B is also the most widely deployed technology in MENA. In North America, FTTx/D3.0 continues to grow faster than other technologies and remains in the lead. In LATAM, competition from VDSL technologies is growing, particularly in Brazil. In Europe, where incumbents are optimizing copper networks, growth in VDSL, G. Fast and other copper based technologies may be expected.