Expect more than 100 million U.S. FTTH passings in next 10 years: RVA
Market research firm RVA predicts in a new report that upcoming fiber to the home (FTTH) infrastructure will pass more than 100 million homes in the U.S. over approximately the next 10 years. Canada and Caribbean nations also should see strong FTTH growth, RVA says in 2023-2024 North American Fiber Broadband Report: FTTH and 5G Review and Forecast.
The 100 million figure is significantly more than the 68 million homes passed in the U.S. so far. That latter total includes homes passed multiple times; the number of unique homes passed in the U.S. is approximately 63 million, RVA estimates. The report covers passings of a wide number of homes, including primary homes, homes being passed by two or more fiber providers in certain demographics, and second homes/short-term rental homes.
Telecom companies, cable MSOs, independent providers, municipalities, rural electrical cooperatives, and others will participate in the FTTH deluge, RVA expects. Capital investment in U.S. FTTH will be more than $135 billion over the next five years, according to the report. This figure exceeds all the money spent on FTTH roll outs in the U.S. so far, RVA asserts.
“There are many underlying drivers for the unprecedented build cycle highlighted by the report’s new data and research. Perhaps most importantly, consumers respond to and churn towards fiber providers whenever fiber is available,” according to Michael Render, CEO of RVA. Render and RVA are the principal market research partners of the Fiber Broadband Association (see, for example, "U.S. FTTH deployments set record in 2022: Fiber Broadband Association").
RVA’s 2023-2024 North American Fiber Broadband Report: FTTH and 5G Review and Forecast examines the consumer and competitive FTTH drivers and details the history and forecast for many different classifications of FTTH providers. Possible deployment constraining factors in the forecast period are also reviewed. In addition, the report includes a forecast for the use of fiber for 5G and other purposes. Background data is based on research and quantitative analysis involving public data and interviews with hundreds of providers, vendors, and industry experts, as well consumer surveys of over 3500 online users, conducted in partnership with the Fiber Broadband Association.
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Stephen Hardy | Editorial Director and Associate Publisher, Lightwave
Stephen Hardy is editorial director and associate publisher of Lightwave and Broadband Technology Report, part of the Lighting & Technology Group at Endeavor Business Media. Stephen is responsible for establishing and executing editorial strategy across the both brands’ websites, email newsletters, events, and other information products. He has covered the fiber-optics space for more than 20 years, and communications and technology for more than 35 years. During his tenure, Lightwave has received awards from Folio: and the American Society of Business Press Editors (ASBPE) for editorial excellence. Prior to joining Lightwave in 1997, Stephen worked for Telecommunications magazine and the Journal of Electronic Defense.
Stephen has moderated panels at numerous events, including the Optica Executive Forum, ECOC, and SCTE Cable-Tec Expo. He also is program director for the Lightwave Innovation Reviews and the Diamond Technology Reviews.
He has written numerous articles in all aspects of optical communications and fiber-optic networks, including fiber to the home (FTTH), PON, optical components, DWDM, fiber cables, packet optical transport, optical transceivers, lasers, fiber optic testing, and more.
You can connect with Stephen on LinkedIn as well as Twitter.