The number of homes in Europe passed by FTTH/B networks rose by nearly 12 million in the year to September 2019, to a total of almost 172 million, according to the latest report from the FTTH Council Europe. That's equal to 49.9 percent of homes in the 39 countries, compared to 46.4 percent a year earlier. The number of fibre subscribers reached 70.4 million, up 15 percent year-on-year.
The main expansion in coverage took place in western Europe, led by France (+3.5 mln homes), Italy (+1.9 mln) and Spain (+1.5 mln). In terms of percentage growth rates, Belgium led with a 307 percent increase in coverage, followed by Ireland (+70.4%), Switzerland (+69.1%), the UK (+50.8%) and Germany (33.5%). Most of these countries were expanding from a low base.
France also led in the number of new FTTH/B subscribers with the addition of 1.9 million in the 12 months, followed by Spain with 1.65 million. In total, 40.9 percent of the homes able to receive a fibre connection subscribed to the services in September 2019, up from 37.4 percent a year earlier. This is higher in the 28 members of the EU, at 43.3 percent (versus 38.2% in September 2018).
The report found that FTTH is taking a more clear lead over FTTB, at a 60-40 split in coverage. Alternative operators still account for the largest part of the fibre coverage, contributing around 56 percent of the total fibre expansion. Only 41 percent of homes are passed by former incumbent operators, but this is expected to change as more of them commit to full fibre over copper upgrades. The role of governments and local authorities is also increasing, either directly by signing agreements with telecom players or via public funds, the Council said.
In terms of fibre penetration, Iceland became the country with the highest share of households with fibre subscriptions. At 65.9 percent, Iceland overtook the previous leader Latvia, which fell to fifth place with a penetration of 53.9 percent. The rest of the top five included Belarus (62.8%), Sweden (56.8%) and Spain (54.3%).
