Iceland Telecom Market Size
Iceland Telecom Market Analysis
The Iceland Telecom Market size is estimated at USD 582.55 million in 2025, and is expected to reach USD 667.18 million by 2030, at a CAGR of 2.75% during the forecast period (2025-2030).
- Iceland has one of the mini yet most progressive telecom opportunity in Europe. There is an effective competition in mobile and broadband markets, with several players having emerged to challenge dominance of the two leading operators Síminn and Sýn, which have interests across the telecom sectors.
- Mobile cellular subscriptions are expected to increase telecom services in Iceland. According to World Bank collection of development indicators, mobile cellular subscriptions in Iceland were reported at 456864 in 2022 and increased to 479707 in 2023.
- Further, Galway was seen as an ideal operation point because it had a suitable seabed for the submarine cable itself, and the near-shore city made it a great home for the submarine landing. Recently, the IRIS submarine cable was completed with services, and the submarine cable was developed by SubCom, a reliable fiber optic cable manufacturer, and operated by Farice, Iceland’s main telecommunications service provider, it is a high-speed system connecting Thorlakshofn, Iceland, to Galway Bay.
- As Iceland’s leading telecommunications provider, Mila built an extensive access network connecting nearly every company and household in the country. Currently, more than 90% of homes have access to 1Gb/sec internet services. However, the growth of remote work, enterprise applications, gaming, and digital economy is pushing the need for new multi-gigabit services.
- In the post-COVID scenario, the pandemic continued to significantly impact the telecoms market. On consumer side, spending on telecom services and devices is under pressure from financial effect of large-scale job losses and consequent restriction on the disposable incomes.
Iceland Telecom Market Trends
Wireless Service is Expected to Hold Significant Growth
- Iceland is listed 6th worldwide for fixed access download speeds according to Speedtest.net at 249.32 Mbit/s as of December 2023. Today, 90% of citizens are connected to full-fibre (FTTH) networks, with at least 1 Gbit/s speed available to all and 10 Gbit/s available to most
- The 5G rollout in Iceland began in 2020. By the end of 2021, 5G reached 50% of the population, and by the end of 2022, 75%. All major towns in Iceland have 5G service today, and the coverage is approximately 80% of the population, as per The Electronic Communications Office of Iceland 2023.
- The 700, 800, 2100, 2600 MHz, and 3,6 GHz frequencies have been allocated (ITU, 2020). Limited industrial use of 5G has taken place in Iceland, with the available 5G network primarily regarded as a testbed for everyday users.
- Iceland has 168.2 Tbit/s of submarine bandwidth capacity through 4 cables. In 2022, 97% of Icelanders used an electronic ID to identify themselves online. Further, a minority of rural connections are provided by ADSL and fixed wireless in the most remote locations, and wireless service is expected to increase in the rural location in the future.
- Upgrading health care services and improving accessibility in some of the more rural and remote parts of the country are areas where 5G capabilities offer enormous potential. The three Icelandic network providers, Nova, Síminn, and Vodafone Iceland, partnered recently to install antennas in several rural areas. This has expanded access to the Icelandic 112 emergency line and saved lives. Overall, in the future, with more deployment of 5G services, the demand for wireless service will increase significantly.
OTT Services is Expected to Hold a Growth
- SVOD (subscription video-on-demand) services in Iceland have been on a demand in the country. At the time of Netflix' official launch in the country, almost one-third of Icelandic households were already using the platform. Siminn and Syn, the local pay TV operators, also integrated streaming services in their IPTV offers.
- According to FlixPatrol, as of March 2024, there are about 75000 subscribers of Netflix and more than 30000 subscribers of Amazon Prime in Iceland. The increasing broadband penetration is serving the demand for streaming services.
- There are various broadband plans which are focused on OTT subscription offers, leading to demand for broadband service. Further, streaming companies operating in Iceland would be required to invest in Icelandic TV and film production if a new bill proposed by the Minister of Culture is passed. Both Icelandic and foreign streaming companies that service the Icelandic public would be required to do so. The goal of the bill is to strengthen Icelandic culture and language and encourage investment in local production.
- If the bill passes, streaming providers would have to choose between two payment options. Either they would pay 5% of the subscription income from their activities in Iceland to the Icelandic Film Fund on an annual basis, or they would invest the same percentage in the production of domestic audio-visual content.
- Overall, it is expected that during the forecast period, the demand for OTT service is expected to increase with increasing broadband penetration.
Iceland Telecom Industry Overview
The Iceland Telecom Market is moderately consolidated with major players catering to significant share due to ongoing partnerships and recent advancements. Some major market players studied were Síminn HF, Vodafone Iceland, Sýn HF, and others. Some of the recent developments in the market are -
- June 2023 - Siminn announced that they have been rapidly deploying its 5G network with over 100 transmitters already connected. The company is focused on expanding coverage, densifying the system, and upgrading 4G transmitters to provide customers with enhanced speed and RAN.
- March 2023 - Icelandic operator Nova has announced a cooperation agreement with Syn valid to develop and share 200 5G transmission points. Nova, Syn agreed to build 100 5G sites each by 2024.
Iceland Telecom Market Leaders
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Síminn hf
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Vodafone Iceland
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Sýn hf
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Nova Iceland
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Hringdu ehf
- *Disclaimer: Major Players sorted in no particular order
Iceland Telecom Market News
- March 2024: Nokia and Ljosleidarinn (Reykjavik Fibre Network) announced to to introduce next generation broadband to Iceland. Ljosleidarinn deploys Nokia’s Lightspan fiber solution and Altiplano access controller as part of a fiber network upgrade to Software Defined Networking (SDN).
- October 2023: Nokia announced it has been selected as the sole supplier by Mila for upgrading its fiber network for supporting new multi-gigabit services. It plans to offer more than 60,000 customers across Iceland. Nokia’s multi-PON solution will initially be deployed in the capital city of Reykjavik before being expanded to any other cities and regions.
Iceland Telecom Industry Segmentation
Telecom or telecommunication is the long-range transmission of information by electromagnetic means.The Telecom Market includes in-depth trend analysis based on connectivity like Fixed Networks, Mobile Networks, and Telecom Towers. Several factors, including an increasing demand for 5G, are likely to drive the adoption of telecom services.
The Iceland telecom market is segmented by services (voice services (wired, wireless), data and messaging services, OTT and PayTV services). The market sizes and forecasts are provided in terms of value in (USD) for all the above segments.
By Services | Voice Services | Wired |
Wireless | ||
Data and Messaging Services | ||
OTT and PayTV Services |
Iceland Telecom Market Research Faqs
How big is the Iceland Telecom Market?
The Iceland Telecom Market size is expected to reach USD 582.55 million in 2025 and grow at a CAGR of 2.75% to reach USD 667.18 million by 2030.
What is the current Iceland Telecom Market size?
In 2025, the Iceland Telecom Market size is expected to reach USD 582.55 million.
Who are the key players in Iceland Telecom Market?
Síminn hf, Vodafone Iceland, Sýn hf, Nova Iceland and Hringdu ehf are the major companies operating in the Iceland Telecom Market.
What years does this Iceland Telecom Market cover, and what was the market size in 2024?
In 2024, the Iceland Telecom Market size was estimated at USD 566.53 million. The report covers the Iceland Telecom Market historical market size for years: 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024. The report also forecasts the Iceland Telecom Market size for years: 2025, 2026, 2027, 2028, 2029 and 2030.