Broadband will be start to drive the market by 2003. The trick is finding now what companies will be the players to make it happen, and what players will be the ones making the use of all that will come with broadband for the masses. Here read this. The below has one glaring omission, no mention of wireless broadband access, that would only make the numbers higher.
<<Broadband to boost Net consumer spending - report
By Eric Lai
SAN FRANCISCO, Oct 16 (Reuters) - The coming surge in high-speed home broadband services will boost consumer spending on the Internet, with one-quarter of all American households buying more than $10,000 worth of products and services via the Web by 2006, a leading technology consultancy said on Monday.
Gartner Group Inc <IT.N>. predicted in a study that by 2006, the 29 million U.S. households equipped with broadband Internet will spend an average of 20 times more on goods and services than households which surf the Web with the traditional dial-up modems that dominate today.
Broadband "is fundamentally changing the way we buy stuff," said Neil McDonald, vice-president and research director at Gartner.
About half of U.S. households have some form of Internet access today. Gartner predicts that by 2005, three out of four U.S. households will have Internet access, with the majority boasting broadband access.
For the overcrowded Web retailing sector, already hit hard by slower-than-hoped-for growth in Internet spending and the existing, albeit precarious, ban on sales taxes charged on inter-state purchases, the Gartner report bodes well for the long-term -- provided the retailers can survive until broadband becomes more mainstream.
But the news is not all good for e-tailers, as Stamford, Connecticut-based Gartner also predicted that in order to offset the costs of building high-speed links, broadband providers will likely begin charging Web retailers such as Amazon.com and eBay for every visitor they deliver.
And, following the example of credit card companies, telecommunications companies may also start charging businesses a sales commission based on purchases by consumers it delivered to that business' Web site, Gartner said.
"The broadband environment is extremely friendly for both high-end and frequent shoppers. This is similar to charging shops a higher fee for prime real estate in an elite neighborhood," Ken McGee, an industry analyst at Gartner, said.
Gartner analysts believe that AT&T <T.N>, which operates Excite@Home, the top cable Internet-over-cable-TV-wire service in the United States, may begin charging businesses as early as next year, with other broadband providers such as Pacific Bell <SBC.N>, Earthlink Network Inc. <ELNK.O>, AOL Time-Warner <TWX.N> <AOL.N> to quickly follow suit.
The report was released at the opening day of Gartner's annual technology Symposium in Orlando, Florida, where 7,500 corporate executives and technology buyers have gathered to hear forecasts of the latest business technology trends.
Dial-up analog modems are constrained by slow speeds and plagued by dropped connections. Broadband Internet services, of which DSL and cable modem, which goes over cable television lines, are the mainstays, offer faster speeds and "always-on" states for immediate access to the Web.
Gartner predicts that by the middle of this decade, about 29 million households will be equipped with broadband connections.
DSL, which is considered a faster and more reliable service than cable Internet, will boast around 13 million users by the end of 2004, more than double the level of cable Internet, according to Gartner.
For consumers, subscription prices will likely remain the same. Gartner predicts that basic consumer broadband services - either DSL or cable modem - will continue to be priced between $35 and $45 a month.
With the faster speeds, Gartner advises e-businesses to build Web sites with more levels of multimedia and text information to satisfy the ever-increasing demands for richer customer experience.
Still, "we don't believe you have to offer games at your site," McDonald said. "It's all about convenience." >> |
