Madrid, June 12, 2024.- The Ministry for Digital Transformation and Public Function, through the Secretary of State for Telecommunications and Digital Infrastructures, has published the ‘Coverage Report in Spain 2023’ that confirms the strength in connectivity of our country through indicators until June last year. It monitors compliance with the objectives of the European Digital Decade strategy in the field of digital infrastructures, in a context in which State aid is being allocated for the deployment of different technologies throughout the territory.
The report highlights that 2023 was the year in which the fixed digital divide in Spain was closed, since the government managed to guarantee 100% of the population access at affordable price to ultra-fast broadband of at least 100Mbps throughout the territory, through fiber deployment and satellite service Conectate35.es.
In addition, the report confirms robust fixed connectivity networks, with 92.5% of households and businesses with access at speeds of more than 1 Gbps download. This percentage represents an increase of 4 percentage points over the previous year. In this sense, in 2023 the objective was also achieved that practically 8 out of 10 households in rural municipalities already had Gigabit coverage.
These data are well above the European average, and continue to make progress with the implementation of three calls for proposals under the UNICO Broadband programme. This program, promoted by the Government of Spain, has invested more than 1 billion euros than since 2018 to support the deployment of optical fiber to more than 5 million homes or companies. Regarding mobile coverage, the Coverage Report 2023 highlights that 5G already reaches 92.3% of the population, which represents an increase of 10 points compared to the previous year. Particularly relevant is the increase of 18.5 percentage points in rural areas, reaching 68.9%. Over the 3.5GHz band, established by Europe as a priority band for the development of 5G services, the coverage achieved was 58.1% in June 2023, with an increase of 19 percentage points compared to 2022 when it was in the population and ensure that the early deployment of this technology reaches all provinces. The Secretary of State for Telecommunications and Digital Infrastructures, María González Veracruz, stressed that “these data are very positive, to which we must add the guarantee that the satellite represents in all homes, dwellings and SMEs in our country”. “This report highlights the country capabilities we are generating in connectivity that are a great competitive advantage for attracting foreign investment and for digitizing our economy. These coverage data are probably the largest backbone of the country since the promotion of the railway and high-performance motorways, because in this digital era, ensuring connectivity is vital for the development of people and the economy at any point in the country,” he said. This report is complemented by a set of interactive maps that provide information about band services. With these maps, information tools are made available to end users that allow them to determine the availability of connectivity in different areas. 39%.
The government is investing EUR 1 billion to provide 5G to almost two million Spaniards living in municipalities with fewer than 10,000 inhabitants and to ensure that the early deployment of this technology reaches all provinces.
The Secretary of State for Telecommunications and Digital Infrastructures, María González Veracruz, stressed that “these data are very positive, to which we must add the guarantee that the satellite represents in all homes, dwellings and SMEs in our country”.
“This report highlights the country capabilities we are generating in connectivity that are a great competitive advantage for attracting foreign investment and for digitizing our economy. These coverage data are probably the largest backbone of the country since the promotion of the railway and high-performance motorways, because in this digital era, ensuring connectivity is vital for the development of people and the economy at any point in the country,” he said.
This report is complemented by a set of interactive maps that provide information about band services. With these maps, information tools are made available to end users that allow them to determine the availability of connectivity in different areas.