2015 France - Telecoms, Mobile, Broadband and Digital Media - Statistics and Analyses

Strong broadband network supporting rise in videostreaming in France

France has the third largest telecoms market in Europe and in Orange it hosts one of the world’s major telcos, with interests in markets across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The company recently embarked on its five-year ‘Essentials 2020’ program focussed on emerging markets as well as on investments in super-fast broadband and LTE infrastructure within its European footprint.

Despite market liberalisation, the company still dominates all telecom sectors in France, though increasing competition from a number of major players (notably Numéricable-SFR and Iliad) has gradually eroded this lead, prompting it to respond with a range of innovative offers and wide-ranging strategies to meet future customer needs.

Growth in the broadband sector in recent years has been bolstered by demand for high bandwidth applications, considerable investment in fibre infrastructure among telcos and regional governments, and a pro-competitive regulator which has promoted access to Orange’s DSL network for new entrants through local loop unbundling. Recent legislation has secured similar access for fibre infrastructure. DSL still dominates the broadband market in terms of access lines, though fibre deployments have grown substantially in recent years and will continue to do so into 2016, slowly eroding the DSL customer base.

The French mobile phone market has benefited from consistently high investment by MNOs in recent years as they deploy new technologies and secure additional spectrum in a bid to keep pace with customer demand for mobile broadband services. Fierce competition has caused mobile services revenue to fall steadily, to just above €14 billion in 2015. This pressure has encouraged operators to look to convergence and bundled services, and so expand their offerings beyond mobile voice and data.

France also has one of the more developed markets for digital media and media convergence. This is largely the result of an excellent multi-platform broadband infrastructure which has supported a range of videostreaming services (IPTV and SVoD). A greater proportion of broadband subscribers are adopting bundled offers. Triple-play remains the preferred bundle for most customers though quad-play is the fastest growing combination. The success of this market largely rests on competition which has brought the cost of most bundles to below €30 per month.

This report introduces the key aspects of France’s telecom market, providing statistics on the country’s fixed network, and analyses of operator strategies in coming years. It also reviews the key regulatory issues including the status of number portability, wholesaling and carrier preselection. The report in addition covers the multi-play and digital media sectors, including services such as videostreaming and developments in digital, cable and satellite TV. It also examines the latest regulatory measures relating to digital convergence and applications. The mobile voice and data markets are covered, with assessments on recent developments related to spectrum licensing and regulatory issues. The report profiles the major players and MVNOs, providing statistics on their operating and financial performance as well as their strategies for coming years. The fixed-line and wireless broadband markets are also covered, focussing on fibre, cable and DSL infrastructure.

Key developments:

• Regulator consults on revised guidelines for mobile network sharing;
• RED Technologies pilots Licensed Shared Access using 2.3GHz spectrum;
• Digital Republic bill to provide the telecom regulator with authority to oversee net neutrality and open internet access;
• Bouygues Telecom sets up Objenious subsidiary dedicated to the Internet of Things;
• Bouygues Telecom and Orange enter acquisition talks;
• Videostreaming viewing shows 11.5% increase in 2015;
• Netflix signs up some 900,000 subscribers by end-2015;
• Vivendi acquires 80% stake in Dailymotion from Orange;
• Orange sets out five-year Essentials 2020 strategy;
• Telecom sector investment recovers from 2009 downturn;
• Numéricable-SFR launches an 800Mb/s FttP service;
• Report update includes the regulator’s market data updates to Q4 2015, operator data to Q4 2015, recent market developments.

Companies mentioned in this report:

Orange, Iliad, SFR, Numéricable, Bouygues Telecom, Orange, SFR, Free Mobile, Bouygues Telecom, Virgin Mobile, Omea Telecom, Vivendi, TPS, AB Group, TNTSat, Canal+.