The number of Dutch consumer VoIP subscriptions grew 2.6 percent during the fourth quarter, to 4.33 million at the end of 2011. The growth was driven by cable VoIP, which grew by 3.6 percent during the quarter to 2.27 million lines, according to Telecompaper's quarterly Dutch Fixed Telephony Market report. The number of VoIP subscribers over DSL networks was stable at 1.85 million lines, while the remaining VoIP lines were used by FTTH/B customers. The total Dutch fixed telephony market grew by 31,000 connections during the fourth quarter to 5.99 million. The growth in VoIP was dampened by a 5.4 percent drop in PSTN/ISDN connections to 1.38 million. Telecompaper forecast the fixed telephony market to grow by 0.7 percent in 2012, with VoIP offsetting the continued decrease in PSTN/ISDN and WLR users. VoIP lines are expected to increase around 9 percent this year, driven by more operators offering triple-play packages over different networks.
