2017 Hungary - Telecoms, Mobile and Broadband - Statistics and Analyses

Hungary’s 5G Coalition partners make progress with 5G

As in many other markets in the region, in Hungary the number of fixed-lines, as also fixed-line revenue, has been affected by the changing consumer use of such services and by the trend for fixed-to-mobile substitution. Fixed-line operators have thus looked to fixed-line and mobile broadband services to boost revenue. The economic crisis also affected telecom revenue, though recovery since 2013 has increased disposable income among consumers and so helped revitalise sector revenue. However, financial recovery among telcos has been rendered more difficult by the government’s telecom and utility taxes. The tax on internet data traffic was criticised by the European Commission, and the government responded by reducing the rate to 18% in early 2017. Other taxes on calls and messaging services are also in place.

The dynamic mobile market is served by three mobile network operators and a growing number of MVNOs. The bundled services operator Digi Telecommunications has built up a mobile network and in July 2017 further expanded into the fixed-line sector by acquiring the second largest telco Invitel. Mobile penetration is relatively high for the region, and there remains considerable growth in mobile broadband services delivered via upgraded networks. Maygar Telekom is at the forefront of 5G developments, supported by the government, universities, other telcos and vendors forming the Hungarian 5G Coalition

The broadband market has benefited from intense infrastructure-based competition, with the result that broadband penetration is relatively high for the region. There is an extensive cable network, mainly operated by UPC Hungary, competing against DSL services and a vibrant and rapidly expanding fibre sector. The regulator has introduced a number of measures aimed at promoting market competition which together with demand for bandwidth are pushing the drive for higher speed platforms. This has encouraged operators to invest in technology upgrades with a focus on fibre deployments. The incumbent telco Maygar Telekom has built an extensive 1Gb/s footprint, and has also launched a 2Gb/s fibre service. Both of these technologies will be increasingly important to the market during the next few years. It is expected that UPC Hungary will shortly deploy DOCSIS3.1 technology, providing data at 1Gb/s or higher. In addition, amendments to the Utility Tax have encouraged operators to accelerate the deployment of superfast networks (those which provide data of at least 30Mb/s).

This report provides an overview of Hungary’s telecoms market, highlighting regulatory developments, major operators, fixed-line network infrastructure, and a variety of insightful statistics. The report also reviews the mobile voice and data markets, covering the major players and regulatory measures as well as developments in technologies. In addition the report covers the fixed and fixed-wireless broadband sectors, including market analyses, statistics and subscriber forecasts.

Key developments:

• Maygar Telekom launches a 2Gb/s fibre service;
• Government invests HUF150 billion in program to deliver universal 30Mb/s broadband services by 2018;
• Digi acquires Invitel;
• Utility Tax amendments favouring superfast broadband network roll-outs;
• FttX subscriber base broaches 600,000;
• Maygar Telekom launches NB-IoT platform;
• Hungarian 5G Coalition partners trial data rates at up to 22Gb/s;
• Magyar Telekom and Telenor Hungary expand LTE coverage through joint network;
• Report update includes the regulator’s market data to October 2017, telcos’ operating and financial data to Q3 2017, recent market developments.

Companies mentioned in this report:

UPC Hungary, Maygar Telecom, Hungarotel, GTS Datanet, B2B Europe, Magyar Telecom, Invitel, Antenna Hungaria, T-Mobile Hungary, Telenor Hungary, Vodafone Hungary