The African broadband market is on the verge of experiencing dramatic growth, according to a new report released by research consultancy AfricaNext Investment Research.
While African broadband penetration remains low, AfricaNext Research expects the number of broadband subscribers to expand more than four-fold over the next five years, from about 3m in 2007 to close to 13m by 2012.
The African broadband marketplace has long been littered with pessimism; services are expensive, PC penetration is low and the cost of International bandwidth is high. In their new report, 3G, WiMAX, ADSL and the Future of African Broadband, AfricaNext Research argues that this is all about to change.
“From the deployment of new submarine cables to improvements in radio spectral efficiency, there is a confluence of catalysts that suggest that African broadband growth is on the verge of truly taking off,” said AfricaNext Research Principal and report author Guy Zibi. “We believe this is the most significant opportunity for investment returns in the African TMT sector since the mobile voice boom.”
According to the report, the most notable development is the emergence of 3G mobile solutions as the primary broadband access solutions in Africa. “Mobile broadband will account for more than half of the continent’s broadband subscriber base by 2012,” says Zibi.
In 3G, WiMAX, ADSL and the Future of African Broadband, the AfricaNext research team leverages months of research and interviews to analyze the economics of African broadband, develop 3G business case simulations and provide projections for broadband adoption in 30 African markets. The report provides perhaps the most in-depth research conducted on the future and the economics of African mobile broadband.
