Press Releases

Mobile internet traffic doubled in the first half of 2017, year-on-year

23.11.2017
 
 
 
According to ANCOM's latest statistical data report on the Romanian electronic communications market, mobile Internet traffic doubled in the first half of this year, compared to the first half of 2016, from 71 thousand TB to 145 thousand TB. "As expected, the average monthly mobile internet consumption per connection exceeded 1 GB, rising from 0.63 GB in the first half of 2016 to 1.20 GB in the first half of this year" said ANCOM President Sorin Grindeanu at the event organized by the Competition Council today. Infographic available here.
 
Mobile internet
The data processed by the Authority show that, in Romania, the total number of broadband mobile internet connections reached 16.6 million at mid-2017, i.e. increased by 13% y.o.y., while the penetration rate of the mobile Internet at population level reached 85%, up almost 10 percentage points compared to June 2016.
The number of broadband mobile internet subscriptions is steadily growing, these representing more than 67% of all broadband connections (11.2 million connections). The number of prepaid cards for broadband mobile internet access witnessed a slighter growth, by 6%, to 5.5 million.
4G connections recorded the highest growth rate - they doubled compared to the same period of 2016, reaching almost half of all broadband mobile internet connections (7.6 million out of a total of 16.6 million).
The total traffic achieved through broadband mobile internet connections amounted to 145 thousand TB in the first half of 2017, twice as much as in the first semester of last year, when a traffic of 71 thousand TB was achieved. Moreover, the average monthly traffic per connection in the first semester of this year increased by 90% compared to the first half of 2016, from 0.63 GB to 1.20 GB.
 
Fixed internet
According to ANCOM statistics, the number of broadband fixed internet connections in Romania reached 4.6 million at mid-2017, increasing by 6% year-on-year. Through these connections, the users achieved a total traffic of 2.5 million TB, with an average monthly consumption per connection of 92 GB.
The statistical data for the period between the first half of 2016 and the first half of 2017 show that more and more fixed Internet connections allow best-effort speeds of at least 100Mbps. Thus, out of the total of 4.6 million fixed connections, 2.9 million are high-speed connections - 64% of the total.
Connections that allow best-effort speeds between 30Mbps and 100Mbps as well as connections that allow speeds between 10Mbps and 100Mbps account for 13% of the total, while only 10% are connections enabling speeds of 10Mbps or less.
 
Urban vs. rural internet
The number of fixed internet connections installed in the urban area increased by 8% compared to the first half of the previous year, to 3.3 million, while the number of connections in rural areas registered a slight increase of 3%, reaching 1.3 million. The penetration rate of fixed Internet access connections at household level reached 69% in urban areas and, respectively, 38%in rural areas.
Concerning the distribution of speeds provided by residence area, 88% of all connections that enable very high data rates, of at least 100 Mbps, are installed in urban areas.
 
Fixed internet infrastructure
The broadband fixed Internet infrastructure, which makes it possible to connect to the Internet at high transfer speeds in Romania, is dominated by cable connections (over 77% of the fixed internet connections reach the end user via FTTH, coaxial cable or UTP/FTP cable). Both the number and the share of xDSL connections in the total connections decreased to 18% of all the broadband fixed Internet connections.
Furthermore, fixed connections provided by mobile technologies - which are becoming an alternative in areas that are not covered by fixed internet networks - kept growing, reaching 171 thousand, up 25% compared to mid-2016.
 
Statistical data report
ANCOM has drawn up the statistical data report on the Romanian electronic communications market in the first semester of 2017 based on the statistical data reported half-yearly by the providers under the obligation to send ANCOM the values of the indicators corresponding to the categories of services according to Decision no. 333/2013. The Report is available, in Romanian, here.
top

All rights reserved 2024