Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1442703
4 MARKET NEWS 13.1.2022 DEMAND for telecommunication ser- vices remains strong, particularly for fixed and mobile internet services, a survey by the Malta Communications Authority (MCA) has shown. In a statement, the authority said that more robust demand for mobile data materialised along with a rise in voice minute volumes in the mobile segment, further showing that mobile commu- nications are the primary way Maltese stay connected. e MCA said that the latest data indi- cated that many end-users sought fixed data offers with faster download speeds on a general level while also upgrading to mobile data plans that offered more significant allowances. e authority added that this hap- pened in the context of continued in- vestment by local services providers, such as companies investing in fibre networks and 5G networks. However, the postal service continued to decline. Postal volumes in the first three quarters of 2021 were 4% lower than the same period in 2020. e authority said a reason for this was that inbound cross border mail was in decline, partly due to the drop in e-commerce volumes originating from China and the UK. 94% of all fixed broadband subscriptions are part of bundle sets By the end of September, there were 219,460 fixed broadband subscriptions. is amounts to 8,931 more than the previous year, which equates to a 4% rise in subscriptions. 94% of all fixed broadband subscrip- tions were part of bundle sets, the au- thority said. e majority of end-users in Malta have access to fast and ultra-fast inter- net, with download speeds of 100Mbps or more. e share of such users based on the local subscriber base was up by nine percentage points year-on-year, from 51% at the end of September 2020 to 60% at the end of September 2021. SMS volume 8.5% lower than the previous year Subscriptions picked up over the last year as Malta saw ex-pats return to the island alongside domestic growth. In terms of voice and data usage, voice minute traffic volumes in the first three quarters of 2021 were 1.1% higher than the previous year, going from 865 mil- lion minutes to 875 minutes, while domestic data Mb volumes were 4.9% higher, going from 23,887 million Mbs to 35,679 million Mbs. SMS volumes recorded from January to September 2021 were 8.95 lower than in the same period of the same year. Regarding inbound romancing, min- ute volumes consumed in the first nine months of 2021 were 7.2% lower than consumed in 2020. Nonetheless, data volumes were 66.6% higher. Subscriptions rose by 2.7% e TV segment continued to see an upward trend, with subscriptions ris- ing by 4,656 or 2.7% year-on-year to 176,286 by the end of September 2021. 81.1% of subscriptions were purchased in a bungle alongside other electronic commendation products. The fixed-line telephony sector saw small decline e fixed-line telephony segment re- ported a slight decline of 827 subscrip- tions year-on-year, from 259,509 at the end of September 2020 to 258,682 a year later. e number of pre-paid subscriptions also dropped from 5,422 to 15 over the 12-month period ending last September. However, the number of post-paid subscriptions went up by 4,129 or 1.7% year-on-year, to 258,667 by the end of September 2021. 84.4% of all fixed telephony subscrip- tions recorded at the end of September were purchased in a bundle plan. Mobile communication is how Maltese society stays connected, authority survey shows DOCUMENT NAME Mobile telephony – subscriptions as at end of period 386,585 396,459 401,948 394,399 393,192 397,768 401,631 391,496 384,565 393,266 396,812 392,725 387,197 368,650 383,523 376,987 374,951 375,027 369,748 199,706 204,640 207,895 210,360 213,180 217,655 220,113 224,347 230,216 233,339 237,956 241,661 246,215 247,683 251,517 256,136 261,119 267,033 287,670 586,291 609,843 621,744 634,768 635,040 657,418 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 Pre-paid Post-paid Total Fixed broadband – subscriptions as at end of period 61,691 58,284 52,202 31,403 26,718 23,701 20,810 16,879 14,968 13,681 11,931 9,471 8,013 6,874 5,965 5,404 4,715 4,103 3,684 94,238 94,843 97,765 113,625 113,682 113,026 111,750 111,155 106,543 104,911 102,585 100,859 99,766 99,054 97,531 95,620 93,061 83,737 81,170 17,265 24,200 29,836 36,290 43,370 51,277 58,156 63,799 71,966 78,927 85,785 92,183 98,041 103,003 107,564 112,395 116,318 130,022 134,606 173,194 179,803 190,716 200,301 211,060 219,460 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 less than 30Mbps 30Mbps but less than 100Mbps 100Mbps or more Total Average revenue per user (ARPU, €) This indicator captures the average quarterly revenue per subscription reported by local service providers for each service. The revenue element for each individual service is composed of both stand-alone and bundle revenues from subscriptions to a specific service but excludes installation and connection revenues. Readers should note that operators are left at their discretion to allocate their revenues to individual services. € 33.77 € 32.91 € 30.81 € 33.10 € 32.48 € 44.56 € 45.38 € 45.67 € 43.30 € 44.92 € 43.98 € 44.06 € 48.89 € 55.48 € 56.63 € 58.44 € 60.41 € 55.82 € 61.93 € 25 € 30 € 35 € 40 € 45 € 50 € 55 € 60 € 65 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 Fixed telephony Mobile telephony Pay TV Fixed broadband Mobile telephony - subscriptions as at end of period Fixed broadband - subscriptions as at end of period This indicator captures the average quarterly revenue per subscription reported by local service providers for each service