Global fixed broadband subscribers reached 1.591 billion in the first quarter of 2026, up 1.06% on the previous quarter and 4.15% year-on-year, according to research by analysts Point Topic.
According to Point Topic, growth returned to something closer to the pace seen through most of 2025, following a sharp slowdown to 0.46% in Q4 2025.
The rebound was concentrated in South and East Asia, which supplied 62.6% of the quarter's net additions, largely because China's subscriber base grew again after contracting in the previous quarter.
India remained the fastest-growing large market by some distance, adding 5.91% quarter-on-quarter and 28.33% year-on-year. The market in Argentina also grew significantly, up by 4.71% in the quarter and 12.5% year-on-year.
Point Topic said fibre extended its lead over other technologies, edging past 73.9% of global subscribers, while cable, copper, and partial-fibre connections all continued to contract. Several US operators stopped reporting legacy copper subscriber figures.
Wireless (mainly FWA) and satellite subscribers grew fastest of all technologies in percentage terms (+6.61% and +11.02% quarter-on-quarter respectively), though both remain a small fraction of the global base.
The report also highlighted that Western Europe and North America combined the highest penetration (42.6% and 40.5% of the population respectively) with the slowest growth, consistent with largely saturated markets, while the Middle East and Africa combined the lowest penetration (9.2%) with growth among the fastest of any region.
China remains the largest market by a wide margin, with nearly 700 million subscribers at the end of Q1 2026, followed by the United States and India.
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