There were 4.3 million superfast broadband (30 Mbps+) subscribers in France at the end of 2015, 44 percent more than a year earlier, according to telecom regulator Arcep. They include 1.4 million FttH connections, up 53 percent in a year. The number of 30 Mbps+ subscriptions rose by 385,000 in the fourth quarter and by 1.3 million in the full year.
Customers on 100 Mbps+ connections grew by almost 240,000 in the quarter, including 170,000 on FttH, reaching a total of 1.425 million FttH subscribers at the end of December 2015. FttH additions grew by 500,000 in 2015, versus 375,000 in 2014. Subscriptions to 30-100 Mbps plans increased by 145,000 in three months to reach 1.64 million at the end of December, up 44 percent on December 2014. These include VDSL2 plans, all of which deliver 30 Mbps+.
The number of internet connections with under 30 Mbps download speeds declined by 95,000 in the fourth quarter and by 400,000 in the full year to 22.6 million premises. Such customers accounted for 85 percent of all broadband and superfast broadband subscriptions at the end of 2015. Broadband and superfast broadband subscriptions stood at 26.9 million at the end of December, up by 290,000 in the quarter and by 990,000 (3.4%) in the year.
Homes passed with 30 Mbps+ downstream service grew by 9 percent in a year to 14.5 million at the end of December, of which 5.6 million homes were passed with FttH, 38 percent more than a year ago.
Alternative operators unbundled 9,526 local loop copper exchanges by the end of 2015, up by 800 exchanges in a year, and now serve 91.7 percent of all lines. Alternative operators have bought over 13.6 million wholesale connections from Orange via LLU and bitstream.
Coaxial cable upgrades are continuing, with some 8.8 million homes equipped for 30 Mbps+ FttLA and HFC access, including 7 million able to offer 100 Mbps+. Some 3.8 million of the homes passed are located outside very high-density areas.
The number of FttH homes grew by 12 percent in the quarter and by 38 percent in the year to 5.6 million at the end of 2015. FttH passed 583,000 new households in the fourth quarter, 12 percent more than in the third quarter. Some 2.2 million of them are located outside very high-density areas and 881,000 are served by local government-owned public initiative networks (PINs).
About 3.5 million homes, or 62 percent of households eligible for FttH, could choose between at least two fibre access providers at the end of 2015. Arcep attributes this 35 percent annual gain to network sharing schemes introduced by national regulation.
In total, at the end of the fourth quarter of 2015, 14.5 million households in France were able to subscribe to a superfast broadband access service, including 9 million households (62%) located outside very high-density areas.
