Increase in investment in electronic communications: €412 million invested in infrastructure, 8.5% higher revenues

Operator investments in the electronic communications market increased by 11.7% last year, with the investment trends also followed by an 8.5% increase in revenues.

ZAGREB, 12 March 2025 - Investments in telecommunications infrastructure in Croatia continued to grow last year - the operators invested €412 million in 2024, representing an 11.7% increase compared to 2023. At the same time, the revenues from telecommunications services grew to €1.87 billion, an 8.5% increase. According to data collected by the Croatian Regulatory Authority for Network Industries (HAKOM) from the operators in the market, network modernisation and increased demand for digital services are the key factors driving this growth.

Increased investments in network modernisation
In the past year, investments in mobile networks increased by 26% to €116.2 million, while investments in very high-capacity networks (VHCN) amounted to €116.3 million, reflecting a 22% increase compared to 2023. In the last quarter of 2024, the trend of modernising electronic communications infrastructure continued: the number of fibre-optic network connections increased by 90,903 over the course of the year, while the number of connections to copper infrastructure simultaneously decreased by 59,142. At the end of 2024, the number of fibre-optic connections reached 351,621 out of a total of 515,558 connections in all VHCN networks, with VHCN connections accounting for 45% of the total 1,147,086 broadband access connections. The share of connections with speeds above 100 Mbit/s stood at 47% of all connections, regardless of the access technology.

Increase in revenues from mobile and fixed network services
The growth in total revenues was primarily driven by revenues from mobile network services, which rose by 9% to €1.2 billion over the year, while fixed network services recorded a 7.6% increase, with revenues amounting to €643 million.

Growth of Paid Television and OTT Services
Revenue from paid television in the fourth quarter of 2024 increased by 11.6% compared to the same period last year. The most significant growth occurred in the number of users of the own OTT service, with revenue increasing by 171.9%. The number of connections grew by 2.6% to 939,282, with a 141.9% increase in OTT connections, which reached 140,035 by the end of 2024. The distribution of indicators by technology shows that IPTV holds the largest share at 49.9%, while the own OTT service now accounts for 14.9%, surpassing cable at 13.4%. Satellite and terrestrial paid television account for 12.3% and 9.5%, respectively.

Growth in Data Traffic
The growth in the number of connections via VHCN networks and the increase in OTT service users contributed to the rise in data traffic from internet access services in fixed networks, which grew by over 26% year-on-year. The total data traffic from internet access services in fixed networks at the end of the fourth quarter amounted to 994,597 TB.
 
More detailed data can be found on the website of the Croatian Regulatory Authority for Network Industries (HAKOM) at the provided link.