2013 European FTTH/B Market Summary
In 2013, the number of FTTH/B subscribers in Europe (EU-35) grew steadily by 33%, while FTTH/B coverage continued to grow rapidly by 22%. By the end of 2013, FTTH/B subscribers in EU-35 reached 9.5 million, with household coverage approaching 41 million.
In 2013, several countries demonstrated genuine momentum in FTTH/B development, both in terms of coverage and take-up rate (Take up rate = subscribers/coverage). Switzerland led in the proportion of new FTTH/B subscribers, although its market size cannot be compared to larger markets due to demographic characteristics; 70% of its total FTTH/B subscribers by the end of 2013 were new additions. It was followed by several larger markets such as Turkey, Spain, and Poland, where new FTTH/B subscribers accounted for 46%, 39%, and 32% respectively in 2013. In Turkey, competition between Turk Telekom and Turkcell SuperOnline was particularly intense.
Figure 1: FTTH/B subscribers in European countries (countries with over 200,000 subscribers)
Source: IDATE for FTTH Council Europe
Elsewhere in Europe, the proactive Scandinavian countries—despite their already mature FTTH/B markets—continued to dominate the European market. Denmark's FTTH/B subscriber base grew by 30% in 2013, driven mainly by Waoo!, a joint venture of 15 public utility companies that provide services under one commercial brand while independently operating and managing their local networks—a highly innovative and rare model in Europe. In Finland and other neighboring countries, many local operators are deeply involved in FTTH/B network construction without waiting for large operators to deploy nationwide infrastructure. This appears to align with end-user demand: FTTH/B connections are increasingly viewed as a utility and are therefore often included in monthly apartment rents. The Swedish market also remained dynamic, with FTTH/B subscribers growing by 18% since 2013.
Other markets also saw significant FTTH/B subscriber growth. Overall, 30% of new subscribers in 2013 came from 16 countries, including France, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, and even Germany and the UK—countries without dedicated FTTH/B strategies.
Among FTTH/B service providers, alternative carriers continued to lead. In EU-35, alternative carriers accounted for 45% of FTTH/B household coverage (in EU-39, this figure approached 68%, reflecting the significant role of incumbent telecom operators in Russia and Ukraine). Notably, Vodafone saw substantial growth in FTTH/B household coverage in Portugal and Spain.
Figure 2: FTTH/B household coverage in European countries (countries with over 1 million coverage)
Source: IDATE for FTTH Council Europe
FTTH/B construction projects by local authorities grew modestly, accounting for only 11.9% of FTTH/B household coverage in EU-35.
Incumbents, however, remained key players across all European FTTH/B markets. By the end of 2013, their household coverage in EU-35 accounted for 43.1%, up 5 percentage points from 2012. Several incumbents significantly accelerated their FTTH/B deployments in 2013. The most dynamic was Spain's Telefonica, which added 1.3 million households annually. It was followed by France's Orange, which added 849,000 households; Turk Telekom, which added 500,000 households; KPN/Reggefiber in the Netherlands, which added 385,000 households; and TeliaSonera in Sweden, which added 350,000 households. Recently, Swisscom's moves in Switzerland are also noteworthy; this incumbent, previously focused on FTTN+VDSL deployment, has now decided to accelerate FTTH coverage and added 198,000 households in 2013.