VDSL subscribers grow almost 50 per cent in 2010

The global market for very high bitrate DSL (VDSL) grew by 49 per cent in 2014 and is set to quadruple by 2014, according to a new report from IHS iSuppli.

The VDSL subscriber base rose to 23.3 million in 2010, up from 15.6 million in 2009, and the research firm forecasts that this will grow to 60.1 million by 2014.

BT has invested in the technology in the UK to get the fastest possible speed out of its current copper connections.

"As the broadband market switches from a focus on data to wideband multi-service and multimedia, fatter pipes to receive content are becoming more desired," said Lee Ratliff, senior analyst for broadband and digital home at IHS iSuppli.

"Peer-to-peer file sharing, online gaming, streaming audio, voice over IP and IPTV could all be operating within one home. Such heavy activity points to a future in which 50Mbit/s to 100Mbit/s will be standard, which fits exactly with VDSL's capabilities."

VSDL and, since 2006, VSDL2, allows ISPs to boost the performance of existing copper connections up to 100Mbit/s. However, it is degraded by distance from an exchange to a far greater degree than fibre, and is seen as a bridging technology until fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) is deployed.

"The telco broadband market is undergoing a seismic shift. Newer technologies such as VDSL and FTTH have begun to emerge, while interest is waning within the industry for traditional broadband technologies like cable and ADSL," said Ratliff.