DIGITAL TELEVISION AND BROADBAND CONTINUE TO GROW
2nd june 2004

Ofcom has today published the latest research data on the digital television and broadband markets in the UK.

The research follows Ofcom's report to the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on the progress towards digital switchover in television, published on 5 April 2004.
Last month Ofcom also announced a series of proposals in the broadband market.
The latest updates examine figures published by operators and providers, combined with Ofcom's own research on emerging trends.

KEY DEVELOPMENTS IN THE DIGITAL TELEVISION MARKET

* By 31 March 2004, digital television penetration was estimated to have increased to 53% of UK households, up from 50% from the previous quarter. This represents an increase of 2.8%, with an additional 710,000 households adopting digital television during the quarter,
bringing the total number of households to more than 13 million (13,072,261).

* A further 4% of households subscribed to analogue cable during the quarter, bringing the total number of households receiving some form of multi-channel television to almost 57%. [Source: ntl results Q1 2004, and Telewest Broadband results Q1 2004]

* Sky's UK subscriber base continued to grow, adding 66,000 subscribers to its pay-TV service over the quarter to bring the total number to almost 7 million (6,956,000). [Source: Sky results Q1 2004]

* Freeview (Digital Terrestrial Television) uptake has increased by 18.6% on the previous quarter, with household numbers estimated to have grown to around 3.5 million (3,468,100). [Source: Freeview sales figures Q1 2004, and Ofcom market estimates]

* The total number of subscribers to cable television (both digital and analogue) is estimated to have increased slightly during the quarter to around 3.3 million (3,325,275), of which digital cable now accounts for around 2.4 million (2,408,530). [Source: ntl results Q1 2004, and Telewest Broadband results Q1 2004]

KEY DEVELOPMENTS IN THE BROADBAND MARKET

* At the end of April 2004, the UK had reached almost 4 million broadband users (3,992,500), with over 40,000 new connections each week. [Source: Operators and Ofcom estimates]

* Ofcom's market research also shows that the decline in the use of narrowband services has continued as consumers upgrade to broadband. 67% of adults connect to the internet at home using narrowband, down from 73% in November 2003. [Source: Ofcom's market research]

* 53% of UK adults now have internet access at home, up from 50% in November 2003. 25% of these adults now connect to the Internet using broadband. [Source: Ofcom's market research]

The full Ofcom Digital TV update is available at:
http://www.ofcom.org.uk/research/industry_market_research/m_i_index/dtv/

The full Ofcom Internet and Broadband update is available at:
http://www.ofcom.org.uk/research/consumer_audience_research/int_bband_updt/may2004/

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