High-speed, reliable broadband is an important factor in deciding where to live, according to a new FTTH satisfaction survey conducted by research and consulting firm RVA LLC for the Fiber to the Home Council. More than 90% (91%) of respondents said quality broadband was “very important” in choosing a community in which to live — second only to “safe streets,” which was cited by 98% of respondents.
Other highlights of the RVA/ FTTH Council research:
- North America has experienced record growth in fiber to homes for the last 3 years of which Google, according to analyst reports, makes up a relatively small piece.
- During 2004-2013, large telcos (Verizon, AT&T, CenturyLink and Frontier) accounted for about 83% of the FTTH build, while other providers added just 17% of the annual additions.
- But in the last three years, the large telcos only accounted for about 52% of the build while the “other 1000” FTTH providers added 48% in aggregate. And Google’s only one of those.
In addition, Internet users with FTTH connections are clearly more satisfied than those who don’t have them, according to FTTH Council’s report. More than 7 in 10 survey respondents with gigabit FTTH connectivity (73%) and 57% of those with standard FTTH connections said they were ¨very satisfied¨ with reliability (service up-time). That compares to 37% of those with cable Internet and 38% with telco DSL connections.
Similarly, 7 in 10 of those with gigabit FTTH and 51% of standard FTTH were ¨very satisfied¨ with the download and upload speeds. That compares to 38% of those with cable and 30% of those with DSL connections when it comes to download speed, and 32% and 29%, respectively, regarding upload speed.
FTTH Satisfaction Survey
Nearly 7 in 10 respondents to the FTTH satisfaction survey who have gigabit FTTH (67%) and half of those with regular FTTH (51%) were ¨very satisfied¨ with the consistency of their service in terms of network speed. That compares to 32% for those with cable and 31% of those with DSL connections.
FTTH is also seen as adding value to homes and real estate. Again, access to very high speed and reliable broadband (88%) ranked second, this time following laundry rooms, among amenities seen as increasing the value of single-family residences and first (81%) in terms of multi-family housing.
How much lower in price would a single-family home or condo unit without very fast and reliable broadband need to be to entice respondents to move in? According to FTTH Council’s findings, a discount of $8,528, or 2.8%, for a $300,000 MDU condo and $80, or 8.0% of a $1,000 a month MDU condo rental. The corresponding discount to purchase a $300,000 single-family residence was $9,734, or 3.2%.
In addition, FTTH Council found that FTTH connectivity adds much more value to home-based businesses than cable, DSL or wireless broadband connections.
