Investments in the Belgian telecom market rose 3.4 percent in 2018 to EUR 1.735 billion, according to the annual report from Belgian regulator BIPT. The market itself generated revenues of EUR 7.265 billion, up a slower 0.6 percent from the year before. This means that investments in the sector rose to 23.9 percent of total revenues, from 23.2 percent the year earlier. Broadband ARPU advanced to EUR 28 per month, from 27.5 in 2017, 27.1 in 2016 and 26.6 in 2015.
The number of activated SIM cards lifted 1.2 percent to almost 14.4 million, boosted by more machine-to-marchine Sim cards, up by 282,028 for a total of 2.5 million. Other Sim cards saw volumes decline 0.4 percent. Postpaid cards made up 76.1 percent of the total, up by 1.7 percentage point.
The average data usage per mobile connection lifted to 124 minutes from 118 minutes per month, and to 1.86 GB from 1.17 GB per month. The number of texts sent declined to 143 from 153.
Orange was the strongest party on the mobile market, with Sim numbers increasing there. By contrast, numbers declined at Proximus, bringing down its market share to 30-40 percent from 40-50 percent (-1.4%). Telenet’s share of the market also fell, to 20-30 percent from 30-40 percent (-2.7%). Orange’s share was stable at 20-30 percent (+1.3%). Full MVNOs in general advanced their market share to 7.6 percent from 4.8 percent.
Regarding TV, more homes are watching internet-based services: 24 percent used streaming services such as Netflix in 2018, against 12 percent in 2016. Traditional TV is still popular however, with connections numbers still on the up.
Source: https://www.telecompaper.com/news/belgian-telecom-revenues-grow-06-to-eur-73-bln-bipt--1294946