Spain Reaches 13.2 Million Fiber Optic Lines

FTTH System

Fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) lines in Spain have exceeded 13.2 million in June. This is an increase of 66,894 lines compared to May.

According to the latest data published by the Spanish National Markets and Competition Commission (CNMC) regarding the telecommunications market, the number of fiber optic lines in Spain has increased by 1.1 million compared to June 2021, while the number of DSL lines has decreased by 500,000.

And 77.4% of the total number of fiber optic lines are concentrated in the three main operators: Movistar, Orange and Vodafone according to the CNMC. About 37.3% of FTTH lines belong to Movistar, with a total of 4.9 million lines.

Fiber optic communication is widely used as a medium for information transmission with its unique advantages of anti-interference, light weight and high capacity. The use of existing transmission lines to lay fiber optic cables is the most economical and effective way to achieve this.

FTTH which refers to direct fiber optic access to the home, is a significant technical feature that not only provides greater bandwidth, but also enhances the transparency of the network with respect to data formats, rates, wavelengths and protocols. The use of FTTH also relaxes requirements such as environmental conditions and power supply, simplifying the maintenance and installation of fiber optic cables.

In June, Spain loses 3,267 lines to NEBA indirect access services. The cumulative total are 1,026,508 lines, of which 991,782 are fiber optic lines. There are 2,118,232 local NEBA lines available in Spain at the end of June.

The Spanish cell phone market have added 123,631 lines in June, bringing the total to 56.61 million, an increase of 2.5% compared to the same month last year. The three main operators accounts for 72.9% of the total number of mobile lines on the market.

And the mobile broadband voice customer base has decreased by 22,985 lines. The number now stands at 49.49 million lines. This figure is 3.8% higher than the same month in 2021. The total number of fixed lines are 18.23 million, 36,608 fewer than in May. A total of 141,460 fixed numbers are ported, 23.9 percent fewer than in June 2021.

Rapid growth in demand for high-quality video, audio, and data transmission, growing use of 5G technology, and demand for internet will further drive the FTTH market. According to Mordor Intelligence, the global fiber optic cable for Internet market is estimated to be worth USD 12,111 million in 2022, and the market will rise to USD 23,857 million by 2027.