Belgium - Key Statistics, Telecom Market and Regulatory Overviews

Synopsis

Belgium’s medium-sized telecom market benefits from comprehensive DSL and cable networks, a strong cable-TV sector, and effective competition in the broadband and mobile telephone markets. Broadband penetration lags behind the leading European nations but new regulatory measures to promote wholesale and bitstream access should address lingering issues.

This report provides data and analysis on key aspects of the Belgian telecom market. It assesses the latest statistics on fixed-network services and also reviews key regulatory issues, noting the status of interconnection, local loop unbundling, number portability and carrier preselection. The telecom infrastructure and major fixed-network operators and are also profiled.

Key developments:

Liberty Global increases stake in Telenet; regulator undergoes structural changes to meet strategic vision to 2013; regulator’s 2011 market data update; telcos’ financial and operating data to Q1 2013; market developments to May 2013.

Companies covered in this report include:

Belgacom, COLT, Mobistar, Scarlet, Tele2, Telenet, Versatel.

Table of Contents

• 1. Synopsis
• 2. Key statistics
• 3. Telecommunications market
  • 3.1 Overview of Belgium’s telecom market
• 4. Regulatory environment
  • 4.1 History
    • 4.1.1 EU regulatory framework
    • 4.1.2 Revised NFR
  • 4.2 Regulatory authority
    • 4.2.1 Belgian Institute for Posts and Telecommunications (BIPT)
  • 4.3 Telecom sector liberalisation in Belgium
    • 4.3.1 Privatisation of Belgacom
    • 4.3.2 Interconnect
    • 4.3.3 Access
    • 4.3.4 Number Portability (NP)
    • 4.3.5 Carrier PreSelection (CPS)
    • 4.3.6 Wholesale Line Rental (WLR)
• 5. Fixed network operators in Belgium
  • 5.1 Overview of operators
  • 5.2 Belgacom
  • 5.3 COLT Telecom NV
  • 5.4 Mobistar
  • 5.5 Scarlet (formerly KPN Belgium)
  • 5.6 Tele2 Belgium
  • 5.7 Telenet
• 6. Telecommunications infrastructure
  • 6.1 National telecom network
  • 6.2 Next Generation Network (NGN)
  • 6.3 International infrastructure
  • 6.4 E-Health services
• 7. Related reports

• Table 1 – Country statistics – 2012 (e)
• Table 2 – Telecom revenue and investment statistics – 2012 (e)
• Table 3 – Telephone network statistics – 2012 (e)
• Table 4 – Internet user statistics – 2013 (e)
• Table 5 – Broadband statistics – 2012 (e)
• Table 6 – Mobile statistics – 2012 (e)
• Table 7 – National telecommunications authority
• Table 8 – Telecom market investment: fixed and mobile by sector – 2006 - 2012
• Table 9 – Telecom market investment (regulator data) – 2007 - 2011
• Table 10 – Total telecom market revenue by sector – 2006 - 2013
• Table 11 – Telecom market revenue (not inc. TV) – 2006 - 2013
• Table 12 – Share of telecom revenue by sector – 2011
• Table 13 – Unbundled loops and access lines – 2004 - 2009
• Table 14 – BRUO and BROBA monthly access fees – 2011
• Table 15 – Fixed numbers ported (historical) – 2000 - 2005
• Table 16 – Carrier preselect numbers and annual change – 2000 - 2010
• Table 17 – Fixed-line telephony revenue – 2002 - 2013
• Table 18 – Fixed-line traffic by type – 2005 - 2012
• Table 19 – Belgacom (CBU) access channels – 2007 - 2013
• Table 20 – Belgacom residential traffic – 2007 - 2013
• Table 21 – Belgacom Group financial data – 2003 - 2013
• Table 22 – Belgacom revenue by sector – 2004 - 2013
• Table 23 – Belgacom revenue by operating division – 2007 - 2013
• Table 24 – Belgacom fixed-line services revenue by sector (CBU) – 2007 - 2013
• Table 25 – Belgacom monthly ARPU by sector (CBU) – 2005 - 2013
• Table 26 – Mobistar financial data by sector – 2007 - 2012
• Table 27 – Mobistar subscribers by sector – 2008 - 2012
• Table 28 – Telenet revenue by sector – 2004 - 2013
• Table 29 – Telenet subscribers by sector – 2006 - 2013
• Table 30 – Telenet financial data – 2005 - 2013
• Table 31 – Telenet subscriber monthly ARPU – 2005 - 2013
• Table 32 – Historical – Fixed lines in service and teledensity – 1995; 1997; 1999 - 2004
• Table 33 – Fixed lines in service and teledensity – 2005 - 2013
• Table 34 – Fixed lines by type – 2006 - 2012
• Table 35 – Altnet fixed lines – 2000 - 2013

• Chart 1 – Telecom market revenue by sector – 2006 - 2013
• Chart 2 – Fixed-line traffic by type – 2005 – 2012
• Chart 3 – Belgacom residential traffic – 2007 - 2013
• Chart 4 – Belgacom Group financial data – 2003 - 2013
• Chart 5 – Belgacom revenue by sector – 2004 - 2013
• Chart 6 – Belgacom revenue by operating division – 2007 - 2013
• Chart 7 – Belgacom fixed-line services revenue by sector (CBU) – 2007 - 2013
• Chart 8 – Mobistar financial data – 2007 - 2012
• Chart 9 – Mobistar subscribers by sector – 2008 - 2013
• Chart 10 – Telenet revenue by sector – 2004 - 2013
• Chart 11 – Telenet subscribers by sector – 2006 - 201
• Chart 12 – Telenet financial data – 2005 - 2013
• Chart 13 – Fixed lines in service and teledensity – 2005 - 2013
• Chart 14 – Fixed lines by type – 2006 – 2012

• Exhibit 1 – EU – The New Regulatory Framework (NRF)
• Exhibit 3 – Number portability defined

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