China is set to become the world's biggest broadband market in less than a year, according to telecoms research and consultancy firm Ovum.
But despite the escalation in subscriber numbers - with a 79% compound annual growth rate in the last three years - China still has a lot more room for growth as its broadband penetration rate lags behind other Asia-Pacific countries at 3.4%.
Growth is expected to come from a booming economy, rising incomes, expanding PC penetration as well as new technologies such as VoIP and IPTV and events such as the Olympic Games.
Ovum predicts that broadband subscribers will reach 139 million by 2010 with a CAGR of 75%, rising from an anticipated 79 million subscribers in 2007.
Currently, DSL services dominate with a market share of 71% and 32 million subscribers as of June 2006.
Ethernet-based LAN services, which are popular in high-density areas, account for 26% of the market. Cable modem and wireless technologies contribute a lot less.
'Operators are progressively upgrading the network using higher speed technology such as ADSL2+ and VDSL to meet increasing bandwidth demands,' said Kevin Lee, senior analyst at Ovum in Hong Kong.
The emergence of VoIP in the market will boost wireless broadband, enabling operators to see returns on their wireless local area networks.
But growth could be stymied by the need for restructuring in the Chinese market.