An average broadband consumer is using almost 600 gigabytes (GB) of data per month, while the number of subscribers on gigabit-tier plans more than doubled between year-end 2021 and year-end 2022, according to OpenVault.
The OpenVault Broadband Insights (OVBI) report for the fourth quarter of 2022 found that average consumption was 586.7 GB at the end of the year, a 10% increase from the fourth quarter of 2021. The percentage of subscribers of gigabit networks rose to 26%, which was more than double the year-ago figure of 12.2%.
“Demand for greater internet speed continues to increase,” according to the report. “Operators need to be mindful not only of this overall growth but of growth among specific segments of subscribers and at specific times. Consumption by subscribers in the FCC’s Affordable Connectivity Program continues to outpace that of all subscribers, and rapid growth of peak time consumption – especially during and around the holiday season – both are considerations that need to be addressed in network planning.”
Other findings in the report include:
- The percentage of power users consuming 1 terabyte (TB) or more per month in the fourth quarter was 18.7%, a year-over-year increase of 16%.and 10 times the percentage observed just five years ago, in Q417.
- The annual growth of superpower users – those consuming 2 TB or more per month — increased 25%, from 2.7% to 3.4%. That’s almost a nearly 30x increase within the past five years.
- As migration to faster speed tiers continued, the percentage of subscribers in tiers under 200 Mbps declined by 43% during the quarter.
The tendency of households in the ACP to use more broadband than other households previously was noted by OVBI.
Updated headline to reference 600GB
