In the second quarter of 2008 analysis has shown that bundled DSL services across the world were offered at lower prices than a simple broadband connection according to the latest report from Point Topic.

This is especially true in Western Europe where broadband with fixed telephony and broadband with VoIP packages are becoming extremely competitive. The average price of a double play package with VoIP was $47.83, down almost 30% from $68.16 in the previous quarter, while the average cost of its IPTV counterpart was up almost 20% from $60.75 to $72.73. This compares to the average standalone tariff of $56.45.

This pattern was repeated in other regions around the world. "For example Indian based ISP Bharti Telecom's tariffs, in conjunction with others in the region, mean that bundles in South and East Asia are 43% cheaper than standalone," says Fiona Vanier, Senior Analyst at Point Topic.

Double play services in the Middle East and Africa cost on average $71.25, second in regional ranking after Latin America. However, still it is less than the average standalone tariff in this region. In Asia Pacific the average cost of a double play service with VoIP was $28.73 while the average cost of double play services with fixed telephony was $41.08.

"Ultimately ISPs want customers, and they want customers who generate revenue, in particular they want growth in revenue. To achieve this they are going to have to hook into all aspects of communication and data transfer, whether it's voice, video or plain bits," continues Vanier.

Eastern Europe is perhaps the clearest example of this strategy and has the cheapest average triple play service, down from $65.63 in Q1 2008 to $57.03 in Q2 2008 (a 13% reduction). This makes even cheaper than an average double play package with fixed telephony for this region. Another average double play tariff - broadband plus IPTV was the lowest in Eastern Europe - lower again than the standalone tariff ($32.04 and $42.32 respectively).

"A subscriber who takes more than one service from an ISP is more likely to stay with that provider. They are more likely to generate more revenue over their customer cycle than plain broadband subscribers and that's what the ISPs and their shareholders require," concludes Vanier.