Industry expects believe that cable access has the last-mile delivery edge to home users while DSL is generally preferred by businesses. With DSL, consumers get a guaranteed amount of bandwidth between their computers and the telephone company's central office whereas cable modem operations are designed similar to a local area network. That has led cable ISPs to implement caps on streaming media downloads and limit upstream bandwidth.

A recent study by research firm Parks Associates found most dial-up Internet users would prefer DSL over cable modem connectivity. Of 6,000 dialup users that plan to upgrade, 34 percent wanted DSL, compared with 25 percent who would opt for cable modem services. Of nearly 600 broadband users, 70 percent said they were satisfied with their service, with 10 percent claiming to be unsatisfied. Of the cable modem users surveyed, 41 percent said they would switch services if they could get the same speed for $10 less per month. Only 31 percent of DSL users provided the same response.

According to Parks, broadband users surveyed claimed that the most attractive benefits of the service included the high speed and then the instant Internet connection, followed by constant connectivity, broadband content, the lack of need for a phone line. The same users said they disliked the high monthly fees, service outages and variances in speed.

But the consumers don't distinguish between broadband platforms. To home users, its not a matter of who comes to market first, not who has the richest content.

From the article "Consumers Sorting Through Broadband Battles," by Patricia Fusco.

Next: Residential Gateways to Soar," by allNetDevices Staff

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