Independent MVNOs are approaching 20 percent of the Dutch mobile market, according to the latest report from Telecompaper. They counted 4.0 million customers at the end of March, and increased their market share to 19.7 percent of total Dutch Sims, from 19.2 percent six months earlier. Other 'virtual' brands, such as the second brands or co-brands run by the mobile operators, had around 4.6 million customers. Together the independent MVNOs and other virtual brands had 41.8 percent of Dutch mobile customers at the end of March.
Virtual operators also active in the fixed market, such as Ziggo Mobiel and Tele2, and in the ‘no-frills’, low-cost segment, such as Hollandsnieuwe, Simpel and Youfone, were the main ones growing in the period researched. The no-frills segment remains the largest in the Dutch VO market, accounting for slightly more than a third of customers, while the fixed segment has a 12 percent market share.
While virtual operators slightly expanded their market share, the research shows that more virtual players exited the market than entered it in the six months since Telecompaper’s last report on Dutch MVNOs. After counting three new brands and five exits in the period, the total number of active mobile virtual operators in the Netherlands fell to 65 at the end of March 2015. Notable exits included Vodafone’s second brand Blyk and T-Mobile’s partnership with MTV Mobile, while ISP Solcon was the latest fixed provider to enter the mobile market.
The VO market remains dominated by the same 10 brands, with no change in the rankings over the past six months. The KPN brands Hi and Telfort still lead the total VO market, although both are showing a gradual decline in customers. Lebara, Tele2 and Lycamobile remain the leaders of the independent MVNO brands. This situation will change in the next report, following Hi’s announced exit from the market and Tele2’s switch to MNO status instead of MVNO. Others announced exits since the end of March include UPC Mobile, Mobile care Safe SIM and Mobile Vikings.
