The number of broadband internet users in Brazil reached 10 million by mid-2008, up 48 percent from the same period last year, according to a study released Thursday by Cisco, a world leading supplier of network equipment and management. Pedro Ripper, president of Cisco's Brazilian Branch, said the increase of high-speed mobile internet services and the sale of computers have contributed to the growing number of broadband internet users. The study shows that broadband internet service has covered 13 percent of Brazilian homes. Fixed broadband users and mobile broadband users reached 8.72 million and 1.31 million respectively by June 2008, an annual increase of 33.24 percent and 464 percent, according to Xinhua. Sao Paulo state has the most broadband internet users in Brazil, with 38.7 percent of the total, down from 40 percent by mid-2007. Users in Brazil's northeastern and mid-western regions reached 6.4percent and 8.2 percent respectively. According to the study, residents answer for 87.5 percent of the total broadband connections, while companies account for only 12.5 percent of subscribers.
