Brazil - 16% growth in the number of broadband connections during the first half of 2009

[ec] Cisco today announced the 12th edition of the Cisco Broadband Barometer, showing a 16 percent growth in the number of broadband connections in Brazil during the first half of 2009. By June 2009, Brazil reached 13.6 million broadband connections across the country. The increasing penetration of PCs in Brazilian homes contributed for the broadband market's acceleration in the country.

Tax-reduction programs for computers keep being a key driver of the growth. Even in a challenging economic period for several sectors of the economy, broadband services showed sustainable growth, having added approximately 1.13 million fixed and 680,000 mobile connections to the local market during the first half of 2009.

Key Findings:

* The broadband penetration in Brazil increased slightly from the previous Barometer edition, going from 5.16 percent to 5.8 percent. The state of São Paulo still holds the highest number of connections, with 11 percent share of the connections in Brazil.
* In the 12-month period between June 2008 and June 2009, the registered broadband growth was 36.5 percent.
* Mobile broadband continues to show strong growth. The quantity of broadband subscribers using mobile connections accounted for 2.6 million subscribers in June 2009, a 34.2 percent increase from the previous six months. IDC estimates that the number of mobile connections used on desktops, notebooks or netbooks reached 2.6 million in this period.
* Brazil is just 1.4 million connections from the goal of 15 million set by the Cisco Broadband Barometer for 2010.
* The average navigation speed continues to increase, albeit slowly. A growth of more than 3 percent was registered for speeds of more than 2 Mbps, the highest growth among available speeds in Brazil. Connections of 2 Mbps currently account for 16 percent of the Brazilian connections.
* The state of São Paulo increased its share in the total number of connections, when compared to Brazil as a whole, following the trend also seen in the second half of 2008. The greater 3G coverage contributed to this growth.
* São Paulo also leads in the "residential access" segment with 33 percent of penetration. The national average for Brazil at 17.85 percent continues to increase, though more improvements are necessary to achieve the substantial benefits afforded by broadband connectivity.
* Once again, residential use was significantly higher than corporate use in the mobile broadband market. Residential access grew five percent compared to December 2008, reaching 76.6 percent of the connections. This is compared to 23.4 percent of corporate connections, highlighting the appeal of this kind of connection for personal use.
* Broadband prices remained stable during the quarter. Some companies have increased the bandwidth offered maintaining similar price offerings.
* According to the latest National Survey by Household Sample, from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), 17.95 million Brazilian households have computers, 31.2 percent of total households versus 5.6 percent penetration for all habitants.

Broadband Adoption Accelerates in Brazil with 16% Growth in 2009
see also Cisco Broadband Barometer