South Korea Telecoms Market Report

Telecoms, Mobile and Broadband - Statistics and Analyses

Last updated: 23 Sep 2026 Update History

Report Status: Current

Report Pages: 196

Analyst: Henry Lancaster

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Summary
Table Of Contents

South Korea to gain access to new subsea cables

South Korea has one of the most mature telecom markets globally. The expansive digital industry represented 15.2% of the country’s total industry revenue in 2024, and employed about 8.3% of the workforce. Advanced infrastructure in the fixed and mobile sectors has been rolled out with strong central government support and effective oversight from a regulator that had been overhauled in October 2025, providing it with more extensive powers.

Fixed broadband services are largely based on fibre networks, while by June 2026 about 68% of all mobile connections were on 5G networks. South Korea is also at the leading edge of telecom technology developments, including 6G. While the telcos may be focused on continuing to develop 5G services, the government is looking ahead to 6G and has put in place investment strategies to ensure the country is at the forefront of 6G standardisation and policy decision-making.

With its highly urbanised, tech-savvy population, South Korea also enjoys very high penetration levels across all segments. The performance of the mobile sector is on a par with other developed markets in the region, while in the wireline segment South Korea has a particularly high fibre penetration. This is partly a reflection of the large proportion of its population (around 60%) who live in apartment buildings, making fibre and apartment LAN connections relatively easy and cost-effective to deploy. The government’s Ultra Broadband Convergence Network (UBcN) is a significant initiative, enabling fibre-based broadband connections nationwide and promoting infrastructure sharing between telcos, thus reducing deployment costs.

Fixed-line teledensity is also very high compared to most of the rest of the world, though the number of traditional copper connections has fallen steadily. More than half of fixed connections are now internet-based. The fall in traditional telephony encouraged the incumbent telco KT Corp to diversify into other telecom segments (including investments in 5G and the development of 6G) as well as non-telecom sectors (such as autonomous vehicles and AI), thus transforming itself into a digital platform company.

Key Developments

South Korea to be connected to the Intra-Asia Marine Cable.
MSIT planning to quadruple backbone network transmission speed by 2030 and increase submarine cable capacity to 260Tb/s.
5G adoption reaches 68% of all mobile phone subscribers.
MSIT to invest KRW440.4 billion in future 6G networks and the development of integrated satellite technologies.
Report update includes regulator market data to June 2026, operator data to Q2 2026, Telecom Maturity Index charts and analyses, and recent market developments.

Key companies mentioned in this report:

KT Corp, SK Telecom, LG U+, SK Broadband, Stage X

Key statistics
Regional Asia market comparison

Market characteristics
Market Leaders
Market Challengers
Market Emergents
TMI vs GDP
Mobile and mobile broadband penetration
Fixed versus mobile broadband penetration

Country overview
Telecommunications market
Regulatory environment

Regulatory authority

Korea Media and Communications Commission (KMCC)
Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT)

Mobile network developments

Subsidies
Mobile Number Portability (MNP)
Spectrum

Mobile market

Mobile statistics
Mobile infrastructure

6G
5G
LTE
3G
CDMA
Mobile voice
Mobile broadband

Major mobile operators

SK Telecom
KT Corp
LG U+
MVNOs

Fixed-line broadband market

Fixed-line broadband technologies

Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) networks
Apartment LAN
Fibre-to-the-Premises (FttP) networks
Hybrid Fibre Coax (HFC) networks
Other fixed broadband services

Fixed broadband operators

KT Corp
LG U+
SK Broadband

Fixed network operators

KT Corp
LG U+

Telecommunications infrastructure

Overview of the national telecom network
National telecom network

National submarine cable infrastructure

International infrastructure

International submarine cable infrastructure
Korea Internet eXchange (KIX)

Smart infrastructure

IoT
Smart grid
Smart cities
Driverless Cars
Artificial intelligence (AI)

Data centres

Appendix – Historic data

Glossary of abbreviations

Related reports

List of Tables

Table 1 – Top Level Country Statistics and Telco Authorities – South Korea – 2027 (e)
Table 2 – Development of ICT revenue by type (KRW million) – 2018 – 2026
Table 3 – Development of telecom services market revenue by sector (trillion KRW) – 2014 – 2024
Table 4 – Development of telecom market contribution to GDP – 2015 – 2025
Table 5 – Change in the number of mobile number portings – 2012 – 2026
Table 6 – Growth in the number of mobile connections and penetration – 2014 – 2026
Table 7 – Growth in the number of M2M connections by type – 2020 – 2026
Table 8 – Growth in the number of mobile subscribers and penetration – 2023 – 2029
Table 9 – Change in the number of mobile connections by platform (million) – 2012 – 2026
Table 10 – Change in the number of prepaid and contract mobile subscribers – 2018 – 2026
Table 11 – Change in the number of mobile phones by type – 2018 – 2026
Table 12 – Growth in the number of 5G subscribers by operator – 2019 – 2026
Table 13 – Increase in the number of SK Telecom’s 5G subscribers – 2019 – 2026
Table 14 – Change in the number of LTE subscribers by operator (million) – 2016 – 2026
Table 15 – Change in the number of 3G subscribers by operator (million) – 2017 – 2026
Table 16 – Change in the number of GSM subscribers by operator – 2017 – 2023
Table 17 – Growth in the number of mobile broadband subscribers and penetration – 2014 – 2029
Table 18 – Mobile broadband subscribers by operator (million) – 2017 – 2022
Table 19 – Change in mobile data traffic by platform (TB) – 2015 – 2026
Table 20 – Change in average mobile data traffic by platform per subscriber (MB/month) – 2018 – 2026
Table 21 – Change in the number of mobile subscribers by operator (million) – 2012 – 2026
Table 22 – Change in mobile market share of subscribers by operator – 2012 – 2026
Table 23 – Development of mobile service ARPU per month by operator (KRW/month/subscriber) – 2012 – 2026
Table 24 – Change in the number of SK Telecom’s mobile subscribers by platform (million) – 2012 – 2026
Table 25 – Change in the number of SK Telecom’s mobile and MVNO subscribers (million) – 2018 – 2026
Table 26 – Development of SK Telecom’s mobile service revenue – 2012 – 2026
Table 27 – Change in SK Telecom’s mobile ARPU (KRW/month) – 2015 – 2026
Table 28 – Development of KT Corp’s mobile subscribers by platform (million) – 2012 – 2026
Table 29 – Change in the number of KT Corp’s own and MVNO mobile subscribers (million) – 2018 – 2026
Table 30 – Development of KT Corp’s mobile service revenue – 2012 – 2026
Table 31 – Change in KT Corp’s mobile ARPU – 2020 – 2026
Table 32 – Change in the number of LG U+ mobile subscribers (million) – 2012 – 2026
Table 33 – Change in the number of MVNO subscribers by operator (million) – 2012 – 2026
Table 34 – Change in the number of MVNO subscribers by technology – 2017 – 2026
Table 35 – Growth in the number of fixed broadband subscribers and penetration – 2014 – 2029
Table 36 – Change in the number of fixed broadband subscribers by platform (million) – 2012 – 2026
Table 37 – Change in the number of DSL broadband subscribers by operator – 2018 – 2026
Table 38 – Change in the number of apartment LAN broadband subscribers by operator – 2018 – 2026
Table 39 – Change in the number of fibre broadband subscribers by operator – 2018 – 2026
Table 40 – Change in the number of cable broadband subscribers by operator – 2018 – 2026
Table 41 – Increase in WiFi data traffic – 2022 – 2026
Table 42 – Change in the market share of fixed broadband subscribers by operator – 2012 – 2026
Table 43 – Increase in the number of KT‘s broadband subscribers – 2012 – 2026
Table 44 – Change in the number of LG U+‘s broadband subscribers – 2012 – 2026
Table 45 – Change in the number of SK Broadband’s fixed broadband subscribers – 2015 – 2026
Table 46 – Development of SK Broadband’s fixed broadband financials (KRW billion) – 2021 – 2026
Table 47 – Decline in the number of KT Corp’s fixed voice lines – 2012 – 2026
Table 48 – Development of KT Corp’s financial data (KRW billion) – 2012 – 2026
Table 49 – Change in the number of LG U+’s fixed-line subscribers (thousand) – 2012 – 2026
Table 50 – Development of LG U+’s financial data (KRW billion) – 2012 – 2026
Table 51 – Decline in the number of fixed lines in service and teledensity – 2014 – 2029
Table 52 – Change in the number of fixed-wired and VoIP lines (million) – 2016 – 2026
Table 53 – Decline in the number of fixed-wired lines by provider (million) – 2020 – 2026
Table 54 – Change in the number of VoIP lines by provider (million) – 2020 – 2026
Table 55 – Increase in international internet bandwidth capacity – 2013 – 2025
Table 56 – Development of SK Telecom’s data centre revenue – 2021 – 2026
Table 57 – Historic - Mobile subscribers – 1996 – 2013
Table 58 – Historic - CDMA mobile subscribers by operator (million) – 2002 – 2011
Table 59 – Historic - mobile market share by operator – 2002 – 2011
Table 60 – Historic - Mobile subscribers by operator (million) – 2002 – 2011
Table 61 – Historic - Mobile broadband subscribers and penetration – 2012 – 2013
Table 62 – Historic - Development of telecom market contribution to GDP – 2014 – 2014
Table 63 – Historic - Mobile Service ARPU per month by operator (KRW / month) – 2002 – 2011
Table 64 – Historic - KT Corp’s mobile subscribers by type (million) – 2004 – 2011
Table 65 – Historic - SK Telecom mobile subscribers by type (million) – 2002 – 2011
Table 66 – Historic - LG U+ mobile subscribers – 2003 – 2011
Table 67 – Historic - Fixed broadband subscriber growth and penetration rate – 1999 – 2013
Table 68 – Historic - Fixed lines in service and penetration – 1991 – 2013
Table 69 – Historic - South Korea VoIP subscribers – 2006 – 2011
Table 70 – Historic - Fixed broadband subscribers by platform (million) – 1998 – 2011
Table 71 – Historic - Fixed broadband subscribers by operator (million) – 2005 – 2011
Table 72 – Historic - Broadband market share by operator – 2005 – 2011
Table 73 – Historic - LG U+ broadband subscribers – 2004 – 2011
Table 74 – Historic - KT Corp - Fixed Voice - PSTN and VoIP lines subscribers – 1991 – 2011
Table 75 – Historic - KT Corp PSTN lines – 2003 – 2011
Table 76 – Historic - KT Corp VoIP subscribers – 2008 – 2011
Table 77 – Historic - LG U+ fixed-line (PSTN and VoIP) subscribers – 2005 – 2011
Table 78 – Historic - International bandwidth – 1997 – 2011

List of Charts

Chart 1 – Asia Telecoms Maturity Index – Market Leaders
Chart 2 – Asia Telecoms Maturity Index – Market Challengers
Chart 3 – Asia Telecoms Maturity Index – Market Emergents
Chart 4 – Asia – Telecoms Maturity Index vs GDP per capita
Chart 5 – Asia – Mobile subscriber penetration vs mobile broadband penetration
Chart 6 – Northern Asia – Mobile subscriber penetration vs mobile broadband penetration
Chart 7 – Northern Asia – Fixed and mobile broadband penetration
Chart 8 – Development of telecom market revenue by type – 2014 – 2026
Chart 9 – Change in the number of mobile number portings – 2012 – 2026
Chart 10 – Growth in the number of mobile connections and penetration – 2014 – 2026
Chart 11 – Growth in the number of M2M connections by type – 2020 – 2026
Chart 12 – Growth in the number of mobile connections and penetration – 2023 – 2029
Chart 13 – Change in the number of mobile connections by platform – 2012 – 2026
Chart 14 – Change in the number of prepaid and contract mobile subscribers – 2018 – 2026
Chart 15 – Change in the number of mobile phones by type – 2018 – 2026
Chart 16 – Growth in the number of 5G subscribers by operator – 2019 – 2026
Chart 17 – Increase in the number of SK Telecom’s 5G subscribers – 2019 – 2026
Chart 18 – Change in the number of LTE subscribers by operator – 2016 – 2026
Chart 19 – Change in the number of 3G subscribers by operator – 2017 – 2026
Chart 20 – Change in the number of 2G subscribers by operator – 2017 – 2023
Chart 21 – Growth in the number of mobile broadband subscribers and penetration – 2014 – 2029
Chart 22 – Mobile broadband subscribers by operator – 2017 – 2022
Chart 23 – Change in mobile data traffic by platform – 2015 – 2026
Chart 24 – Change in average mobile data traffic by platform per subscriber (MB) – 2018 – 2026
Chart 25 – Change in the number of mobile subscribers by operator – 2012 – 2026
Chart 26 – Change in mobile market share by operator – 2012 – 2026
Chart 27 – Development of mobile service ARPU per month by operator – 2016 – 2026
Chart 28 – Change in the number of SK Telecom’s mobile subscribers by platform – 2012 – 2026
Chart 29 – Change in the number of SK Telecom’s mobile and MVNO subscribers – 2018 – 2026
Chart 30 – Development of SK Telecom’s mobile service revenue – 2012 – 2026
Chart 31 – Change in SK Telecom’s mobile ARPU – 2015 – 2026
Chart 32 – Development of KT Corp’s mobile subscribers by platform – 2013 – 2026
Chart 33 – Change in the number of KT Corp’s own and MVNO mobile subscribers – 2018 – 2026
Chart 34 – Development of KT Corp’s mobile service revenue – 2012 – 2026
Chart 35 – Change in the number of LG U+ mobile subscribers – 2012 – 2026
Chart 36 – Change in the number of MVNO subscribers by operator – 2017 – 2026
Chart 37 – Change in the number of MVNO subscribers by technology – 2017 – 2025
Chart 38 – Growth in the number of fixed broadband subscribers and penetration – 2014 – 2029
Chart 39 – Change in the number of fixed broadband subscribers by platform – 2012 – 2026
Chart 40 – Change in the number of DSL broadband subscribers by operator – 2018 – 2026
Chart 41 – Change in the number of apartment LAN broadband subscribers by operator – 2018 – 2026
Chart 42 – Change in the number of fibre broadband subscribers by operator – 2018 – 2026
Chart 43 – Change in the number of cable broadband subscribers by operator – 2018 – 2026
Chart 44 – Change in the market share of broadband subscribers by operator – 2012 – 2026
Chart 45 – Increase in the number of KT‘s broadband subscribers – 2012 – 2026
Chart 46 – Change in the number of LG U+‘s broadband subscribers – 2012 – 2026
Chart 47 – Change in the number of SK Broadband’s fixed broadband subscribers – 2015 – 2026
Chart 48 – Development of SK Broadband’s fixed broadband financials – 2021 – 2026
Chart 49 – Decline in the number of KT Corp’s fixed voice lines – 2012 – 2026
Chart 50 – Development of KT Corp’s financial data – 2012 – 2026
Chart 51 – Change in the number of LG U+’s fixed-line subscribers – 2012 – 2026
Chart 52 – Development of LG U+’s financial data – 2012 – 2026
Chart 53 – Decline in the number of fixed lines in service and teledensity – 2014 – 2029
Chart 54 – Change in the number of fixed-wired and VoIP lines – 2016 – 2026
Chart 55 – Decline in the number of fixed-wired lines by provider – 2020 – 2026
Chart 56 – Decline in the number of VoIP lines by provider – 2020 – 2026
Chart 57 – Increase in international internet bandwidth capacity – 2013 – 2025

List of Exhibits

Exhibit 1 – Map of Telecom Maturity Index global ranking among countries in Asia
Exhibit 2 – Generalised Market Characteristics by Market Segment
Exhibit 3 – Map of South Korea
Exhibit 4 – Significant telcos in South Korea and their offers
Exhibit 5 – 5G spectrum auction results – July 2018
Exhibit 6 – Comparison of WiBro and mobile technologies in South Korea
Exhibit 7 – International submarine fibre optic cables overview in South Korea
Exhibit 8 – National fibre cables overview in South Korea
Exhibit 9 – Interconnection status by IX

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South Korea Telecoms Market Report

Telecoms, Mobile and Broadband - Statistics and Analyses

Purchase this Report

South Korea to gain access to new subsea cables

Key Developments

Key companies mentioned in this report:

Key statistics

Regional Asia market comparison

Country overview

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

TMT Intelligence

A platform to scale your intelligence tasks

Research Methodology

Hot Topics

News & Views