US broadband subscriber pace slows across the board

The pace of US broadband subscriber growth slowed considerably in the first quarter of 2024 as fiber, fixed wireless access (FWA) and cable broadband service providers collectively turned in results that were worse than what they posted in the year-ago period. Total industry net additions, including or excluding FWA and geosynchronous (GEO) satellite broadband providers, decelerated noticeably in Q1 2024. The total market's growth rate dropped to just 2.3 percent year-over-year, the slowest since the COVID-19 pandemic, MoffettNathanson estimated in its latest broadband industry trends report. Moffett believes the trend is partly attributable to sluggish housing formation, with Census Bureau data indicating that occupied households in the US contracted by about 311,000 units in Q1 2024. The overall broadband market is also becoming increasingly saturated by the quarter. Moffett believes the likely demise of the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) shares in the blame (new enrollments stopped in February), even if it becomes a one-time event that the US broadband industry will have to absorb.