Malta Telecoms Market Report

Telecoms, Mobile and Broadband - Statistics and Analyses

Last updated: 11 May 2021 Update History

Report Pages: 144

Analyst: Henry Lancaster

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Summary
Table Of Contents

Malta preps for subsea cable connection to France

Malta’s small telecom sector is among the most advanced in Europe. This has been helped by the topography, which has made it relatively easy for operators to expand the reach of their fibre infrastructure. With high mobile and broadband penetration rates, the government and regulator have effective strategies in place to capitalise on these infrastructure developments to ensure that the population has among the fastest data rates in Europe, and so is well positioned to take advantage of emerging e-commerce opportunities.

The sector has also been stimulated by regulatory measures designed to reduce consumer prices. Melita having been sold to EQT in late 2019 and Vodafone Malta having been sold to Monaco Telecom, and rebranded as Epic. The incumbent telco GO is investing in a subsea cable to connect the islands to France and Egypt. Expected to be ready for service in 2022, the cable will further enhance Malta’s internet bandwidth and lead to reduced prices for end-users.

There has also been some encouragement to increase market competition. This led to the VULA agreement between GO and Epic Malta, by which Epic was able to enter the fixed broadband market using GO’s fibre infrastructure. In April 2021 Epic began offering FttP services directly, over its own fibre network

Melita provides a national gigabit service via its fibre and DOCSIS3.1 networks, while GO’s extensive FttP network covered about 150,000 premises by early 2021. The company is investing €100 million to develop LTE and fibre through to 2023.

BuddeComm notes that the Covid-19 pandemic continues to have a significant impact on the telecoms market. On the consumer side, spending on telecoms services and devices is under pressure from the financial effect of large-scale job losses and the consequent restriction on disposable incomes. However, the crucial nature of telecom services, both for general communication as well as a tool for home-working, has offset such pressures. In many markets the net effect has been a reduced (and sometimes negative) subscriber growth, which will continue into 2021.

Overall progress towards 5G may be postponed or slowed down in some countries.

On the consumer side, spending on telecoms services and devices is under pressure from the financial effect of large-scale job losses and the consequent restriction on disposable incomes. However, the crucial nature of telecom services, both for general communication as well as a tool for home-working, will offset such pressures. In many markets the net effect should be a steady though reduced increased in subscriber growth.

Although it is challenging to predict and interpret the long-term impacts of the crisis as it develops, these have been acknowledged in the industry forecasts contained in this report.

The report also covers the responses of the telecom operators as well as government agencies and regulators as they react to the crisis to ensure that citizens can continue to make optimum use of telecom services. This can be reflected in subsidy schemes and the promotion of tele-health and tele-education, among other solutions.

Key developments:

Vodafone Malta rebrands as Epic Malta, begins rolling out its own FttP infrastructure, contracts Ericsson as sole 5G vendor;
Monaco Telecom sells its tower portfolio in Malta to Phoenix Tower International (PTI);
Melita launches 5G-ready network, completes project to deliver fibre networks to public schools, provides a 1Gb/s broadband service nationally;
GO commits to €100 million five-year investment in fibre infrastructure, invests €24 million in submarine cable system linking to Marseille and Egypt;
Regulator assesses interest in 3.5Gz spectrum for 5G services;
Government supporting a national FttP network;
Report update includes the regulator's market data updates to December 2020, telcos' operating data to Q4 2020, Telecom Maturity Index charts and analyses, assessment of the global impact of Covid-19 on the telecoms sector, recent market developments.

Companies mentioned in this report:

Epic Malta (Vodafone Malta), GO, Melita, SIS, Ozone, Redtouch Fone, PING, Monaco Telecom, Divitel

Key statistics
Regional European Market Comparison

Europe Telecom Maturity Index by tier

Market Leaders
Market Challengers
Market Emergents

TMI versus GDP
Mobile and mobile broadband penetration
Fixed versus mobile broadband penetration

Country overview
Covid-19 and its impact on the telecom sector

Economic considerations and responses
Subscribers
Infrastructure

Telecommunications market
Regulatory environment

Historical overview
Regulatory authority
Fixed-line developments

Digital Society initiatives
Telecom sector liberalisation
Privatisation
Interconnect
Access
Carrier PreSelection (CPS)
Number Portability (NP)
European Electronic Communications Code
Universal Service Obligations (USO)

Mobile network developments

Roaming
Mobile Termination Rate (MTR)
Mobile Number Portability (MNP)
Spectrum regulations and spectrum auctions

Mobile market

Market analysis
Mobile statistics
Mobile infrastructure

5G
4G (LTE)
3G

Other infrastructure developments

NB-IoT

Mobile data

Short Message Service (SMS)
Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS)

Mobile broadband
Major mobile operators

Epic Malta
GO Mobile
Melita Mobile

MVNOs

Fixed-line broadband market

Introduction and statistical overview
Broadband statistics
Fixed-line broadband technologies

Hybrid Fibre Coax (HFC) networks
Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) networks
Fibre-to-the-Premises (FttP) networks

Other fixed broadband services

Satellite
Wireless broadband

Fixed network operators

GO
Melita

Telecommunications infrastructure

Overview of the national telecom network
International infrastructure
VoIP
Wholesale

Data centres
Appendix – Historic data
Glossary of abbreviations
Related reports

List of Tables

Table 1 – Top Level Country Statistics and Telco Authorities - Malta – 2021 (e)
Table 2 – Change in the number of fixed numbers ported – 2011 – 2020
Table 3 – Growth in roaming voice and data traffic (outbound) – 2009 – 2020
Table 4 – Change in the number of mobile number portings – 2011 – 2020
Table 5 – Growth in the number of mobile subscribers and penetration – 2011 – 2026
Table 6 – Change in mobile market share of subscribers by operator – 2011 – 2020
Table 7 – Growth in mobile voice traffic – 2011 – 2020
Table 8 – Change in the proportion of contract and prepaid subscribers, all operators – 2011 – 2020
Table 9 – Change in the number of prepaid and contract subscribers – 2011 – 2020
Table 10 – Change in blended mobile ARPU – 2009 – 2020
Table 11 – Decline in the volume of SMS messages sent – 2011 – 2020
Table 12 – Change in the number of MMS messages sent – 2011 – 2020
Table 13 – Growth in the number of active mobile broadband subscribers and penetration – 2011 – 2026
Table 14 – Growth in mobile data traffic – 2015 – 2020
Table 15 – Change in the number of Epic Malta’s mobile subscribers – 2011 – 2020
Table 16 – Growth in the number of GO Mobile’s mobile subscribers – 2009 – 2020
Table 17 – Growth in the number of Melita Mobile’s mobile subscribers – 2009 – 2020
Table 18 – MVNO subscribers by operators – 2011 – 2020
Table 19 – Change in the number of fixed broadband subscriptions by platform – 2011 – 2020
Table 20 – Growth in the number of fixed broadband subscribers and penetration – 2011 – 2026
Table 21 – Change in the proportion of broadband connections by data rate – 2009 – 2020
Table 22 – Development of fixed broadband market share by operator – 2011 – 2020
Table 23 – Development of fixed broadband ARPU – 2009 – 2020
Table 24 – Growth in the number of Melita’s cable broadband subscribers – 2009 – 2020
Table 25 – Change in the number of DSL subscribers – 2009 – 2020
Table 26 – Increase in the number of GO’s fibre broadband subscribers – 2015 – 2020
Table 27 – Increase in the number of fixed wireless subscribers – 2011 – 2020
Table 28 – Fixed wireless share of the fixed broadband market – 2011 – 2020
Table 29 – Development of fixed-line subscriber market share by operator – 2009 – 2020
Table 30 – Decline in the volume of outgoing fixed-line calls and traffic – 2011 – 2020
Table 31 – Development of GO Group’s financial data (€ million) – 2011 – 2020
Table 32 – Change in in the number of fixed lines in service and teledensity – 2011 – 2026
Table 33 – Change in the number of fixed lines by operator – 2009 – 2020
Table 34 – Increase in international internet bandwidth – 2011 – 2017
Table 35 – Historic - Telecom sector revenue (€ million) – 2009 – 2016
Table 36 – Historic - Proportion of contract and prepaid subscribers, all operators – 2005 – 2010
Table 37 – Historic - Mobile voice traffic – 2005 – 2010
Table 38 – Historic - SMS messages sent – 2005 – 2010
Table 39 – Historic - Average cost of SMS messages (€) – 2011 – 2016
Table 40 – Historic - MMS messages sent – 2006 – 2010
Table 41 – Historic - Mobile termination rates by operator (€ cents) – 2005 – 2012
Table 42 – Historic - Prepaid and contract subscribers, all operators – 2005 – 2010
Table 43 – Historic - Mobile subscribers and penetration rate – 1998 – 2010
Table 44 – Historic - Mobile broadband subscribers by type – 2012 – 2016
Table 45 – Historic - Dialup internet subscribers – 2005 – 2010
Table 46 – Historic - Broadband subscriptions by platform – 2002 – 2010
Table 47 – Historic - Internet users and penetration – 2002 – 2015
Table 48 – Historic - Broadband subscribers and penetration – 2000 – 2010
Table 49 – Historic - GO financial data (Lm million) – 2004 – 2007
Table 50 – Historic - Fixed lines in service and penetration rate – 2001 – 2010
Table 51 – Historic - Change in the number of fixed numbers ported – 2007 – 2010
Table 52 – Historic - Change in the number of mobile numbers portings – 2006 – 2010
Table 53 – Historic - Change in mobile market share of subscribers by operator – 2007 – 2010
Table 54 – Historic - Growth in the number of active mobile broadband subscribers and penetration – 2009 – 2010
Table 55 – Historic - Change in the number of Vodafone Malta’s mobile subscribers – 2005 – 2010
Table 56 – Historic - Development of fixed broadband market share by operator – 2007 – 2010
Table 57 – Historic - Increase in the number of fixed wireless subscribers – 2007 – 2010
Table 58 – Historic - Fixed wireless share of the fixed broadband market – 2007 – 2010
Table 59 – Historic - Development of fixed-line subscriber market share by operator – 2007 – 2010
Table 60 – Historic - Decline in the volume of outgoing fixed-line calls and traffic – 2008 – 2010
Table 61 – Historic - Development of GO Group’s financial data (€ million) – 2007 – 2010
Table 62 – Historic - Increase in international internet bandwidth – 2007 – 2010

List of Charts

Chart 1 – Europe Telecoms Maturity Index – Market Leaders (top tier)
Chart 2 – Europe Telecoms Maturity Index – Market Challengers (middle tier)
Chart 3 – Europe Telecoms Maturity Index – Market Emergents (bottom tier)
Chart 4 – Overall view - Telecoms Maturity Index vs GDP per Capita
Chart 5 – Europe - mobile subscriber penetration vs mobile broadband penetration
Chart 6 – Scandinavia and Baltics – mobile subscriber penetration vs mobile broadband penetration
Chart 7 – Northern Europe – mobile subscriber penetration vs mobile broadband penetration
Chart 8 – Southern Europe mobile subscriber penetration vs mobile broadband penetration
Chart 9 – Eastern Europe mobile subscriber penetration vs mobile broadband penetration
Chart 10 – Scandinavia and Baltics fixed and mobile broadband penetration
Chart 11 – Northern Europe fixed and mobile broadband penetration
Chart 12 – Southern Europe fixed and mobile broadband penetration
Chart 13 – Eastern Europe fixed and mobile broadband penetration
Chart 14 – Change in the number of fixed numbers ported – 2011 – 2020
Chart 15 – Growth in roaming voice and data traffic (outbound) – 2009 – 2020
Chart 16 – Change in the number of mobile number portings – 2011 – 2020
Chart 17 – Growth in the number of mobile subscribers and penetration – 2011 – 2026
Chart 18 – Change in mobile market share of subscribers by operator – 2011 – 2020
Chart 19 – Growth in mobile voice traffic – 2011 – 2020
Chart 20 – Change in the proportion of contract and prepaid subscribers, all operators – 2011 – 2020
Chart 21 – Change in the number of prepaid and contract subscribers – 2011 – 2020
Chart 22 – Change in blended mobile ARPU – 2009 – 2020
Chart 23 – Decline in the volume of SMS messages sent – 2011 – 2020
Chart 24 – Change in the number of MMS messages sent – 2011 – 2020
Chart 25 – Growth in the number of active mobile broadband subscribers and penetration – 2011 – 2026
Chart 26 – Change in the number of Epic Malta’s mobile subscribers – 2011 – 2020
Chart 27 – Change in the number of GO Mobile’s mobile subscribers – 2009 – 2020
Chart 28 – Growth in the number of Melita Mobile’s mobile subscribers – 2009 – 2020
Chart 29 – Change in the number of fixed broadband subscriptions by platform – 2011 – 2020
Chart 30 – Growth in the number of fixed broadband subscribers and penetration – 2011 – 2026
Chart 31 – Change in the proportion of broadband connections by data rate – 2009 – 2020
Chart 32 – Development of fixed broadband market share by main operator – 2011 – 2020
Chart 33 – Development of fixed broadband ARPU – 2009 – 2020
Chart 34 – Growth in the number of Melita’s cable broadband subscribers – 2009 – 2020
Chart 35 – Change in the number of DSL subscribers – 2009 – 2020
Chart 36 – Increase in the number of GO’s fibre broadband subscribers – 2015 – 2020
Chart 37 – Increase in the number of fixed wireless subscribers – 2011 – 2020
Chart 38 – Development of fixed-line subscriber market share by operator – 2009 – 2020
Chart 39 – Decline in the volume of outgoing fixed-line calls and traffic – 2011 – 2020
Chart 40 – Development of GO Group’s financial data – 2011 – 2020
Chart 41 – Change in in the number of fixed lines in service and teledensity – 2011 – 2026
Chart 42 – Change in the number of fixed lines by major operator – 2009 – 2020

List of Exhibits

Exhibit 1 – Generalised Market Characteristics by Market Segment
Exhibit 2 – Mobile operators and spectrum allocation range
Exhibit 3 – 800MHz spectrum assignments – April 2018
Exhibit 4 – 3G licence allocations – 2005; 2007

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Malta Telecoms Market Report

Telecoms, Mobile and Broadband - Statistics and Analyses

Purchase this Report

Malta preps for subsea cable connection to France

Key developments:

Companies mentioned in this report:

Key statistics

Regional European Market Comparison

Country overview

Covid-19 and its impact on the telecom sector

Telecommunications market

Regulatory environment

Mobile market

Fixed-line broadband market

Fixed network operators

Telecommunications infrastructure

Data centres

Appendix – Historic data

Glossary of abbreviations

Related reports

Purchase this Report

Share this Report

Purchase with Confidence

Research Methodology

Hot Topics

News & Views