CARACAS, Venezuela - May 31, 2010 - Cisco announced today the results of its annual Broadband Barometer, which reported a growth of 23.3 percent in fixed broadband connections in Venezuela last year.

The increase in connections was mainly due to the growth in the residential segment. According to the study, Venezuela reached 1,236,222 fixed connections and a penetration of 4.4 connections per 100 inhabitants.

During the last half of the year, mobile broadband experienced a growth of 29 percent, reaching 624,255 subscriptions.

The Barometer suggests that the Venezuelan broadband market has not been affected by the world economic situation and that connections will continue growing due to the market potential, especially of underserved areas.

Highlights:

• During the second half of 2009, 108,269 connections were added to the fixed broadband market in Venezuela, representing a growth of 9.6 percent between June and December.
• Connections with speeds between 512 kilobits per second and 1 megabit per second account for 56 percent of the fixed broadband market, and connections faster than 1 Mbps make up 11 percent of the market.
• Residences are the dominant segment, with 77 percent of the market. Reducing the price of broadband service and making computers and routers more accessible have led more consumers to acquire broadband connections.
• The enterprise segment makes up 23 percent of the total fixed broadband connections in the country. Small and medium-sized businesses have 11.58 percent of the connections.
• The regions with the highest penetration are Capital District (19.12 percent), Miranda (7.21 percent), Delta Amacuro (7.20 percent), Nueva Esparta (5.09 percent) and Aragua (4.95 percent).
• Almost all (95 percent) of the mobile broadband connections are for individual accounts or homes. The remaining 5 percent are in the enterprise segment.
• Caracas has more than half (56 percent) of the mobile broadband connections in the country.

Supporting Quotes:

• Enrique Mareque, general manager, Cisco Venezuela

"High-speed networks have become a fundamental part of the basic infrastructure of any country because they facilitate growth, and they will contribute propelling the economic recovery. Broadband networks offer an opportunity to increase company productivity and facilitate regional integration, apart from overcoming physical and geographical restrictions in bringing education and health care to Venezuela's citizens."

About the Broadband Barometer

The Cisco Broadband Barometer is a Cisco initiative to promote the accelerated growth of broadband in Latin America. It sets a goal regarding broadband connections, establishes a periodical measurement of their growth, publishes these results, and develops strategies with  service providers and governments.

Currently, the Cisco Barometer measures the broadband growth in Argentina, Chile, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Venezuela, Peru and Uruguay. The Barometer has been supported in each case by the national government.