Spain, the only country to comply with the European Digital Agenda in high speed broadband

Spanish operators have invested a total of 126,000 million euros between 1998, the year in which the market was liberalized, and 2016. The figure is equivalent to 14% of ICT revenues in that period, according to a report by Deloitte, presented today in an event to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the arrival in Spain of Orange.

Fernando Huerta, a partner at Deloitte, pointed out that telecommunications prices have fallen by 23% in Spain in this period, compared to a cumulative increase of 54% in the general CPI.

The expert stressed that Spain far exceeds the EU average in the deployment of fiber optic to the home, which is a sign of identity compared to other countries, which have focused on the VDSL with copper. Huerta highlighted that in the last year there has been a 29% increase in households with hirings of very high-speed broadband services, above 100 Mbps, reaching a share of 24%. “At this rate, it is estimated that in 2020, the penetration of these services would be 52% and Spain would be the only country to achieve one of the objectives of the European Digital Agenda, which provides that 50% of households have contracted services with a speed greater than or equal to 100 Mbps in 2020.

The consultant notes that between 1998 and 2017, the sector has generated more than 440,000 annual employees on average in Spain.

In the event, Orange has reiterated its commitment to Spain, currently its second market in revenue contribution, only behind France. Its CEO, Laurent Paillassot, has defended that his company has become an actor in the social and economic change in Spain, indicating “not only have we been participants in the evolution of this challenging market, but Orange wants to continue growing with the”.

Paillassot recalled that Orange has invested more than 31,000 million euros in Spain in the last 20 years, with significant acquisitions such as Amena in 2006 and Jazztel in 2015. The company, then France Telecom, landed in 1998 with the launch of Uni2 ( then third fixed telephony company) to advance in 1999 with the arrival of Wanadoo.

Paillassot recalled that Orange has 5,500 direct jobs in Spain, in addition to contributing more than 2,045 million euros to the public treasury between 2006 and 2017.

Original Article Source from https://www.mediatelecom.com.mx