U.S. Consumer ISP 4Q04 Vendor Shares

This IDC study addresses which Internet service provider (ISP) led the U.S. Internet access market at the end of the fourth quarter of 2004. Additionally, IDC identifies the top 10 ISPs and their overall market share. Highlights include the following:

The overall consumer ISP market is fluctuating. AOL continued its dominance of the market for consumer Internet access accounts. MSN's place on the top 10 ISP list continued to decline, as it increased its focus on content distribution and deemphasized its ISP business.

"The providers doing well in the market and on IDC's market share list are broadband and discount dial ISPs." — Steven Harris, research manager, ISP Markets