SAN MATEO, Calif. -- There will be a major increase in the bandwidth requirements of communication to homes and to small businesses based in primarily residential areas, plus fiber connections to “downtown” business subscribers, according to the Metro/Access Fiber Optic Network Services, Equipment and Components Forecast Service by the ElectroniCast Corporation. The total metro/access consumption of equipment and components is the sum of residential services demand plus business/government communication demand. According to the forecast, the revenue from providing all types of residential broadband services to North American subscribers will advance from $48.1 billion in 1999 to $95.1 billion in 2004 and $174.8 billion in 2009. This is in addition to narrow band residential communication services revenue, which will advance from $52.4 billion to $130 billion across the forecast period. Figure 1 illustrates the revenue stream, which will reach a combined annual rate of over $300 billion by 2009, and will support major expansions in network equipment and related component revenue.

The communications industry has seen major advances over the past decade in cable television network capacity, expanding wireless/cellular communications, along with regulatory changes in the privatization of government-owned telecommunications. As a result there will be major increases in the bandwidth requirements for business communications to homes and small businesses based primarily in residential areas. “The development and explosive expansion of the Internet is providing greatly expanded residential (and business) services use and revenue,” ElectroniCast Chairman and Founder Jeff D. Montgomery said.

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