Growth in fibre-optic connections and OTT services marks the second quarter of 2026

The number of fibre-optic connections reached 523,888 in the second quarter of 2026, while the total number of VHCN connections stood at 665,267. At the same time, the number of connections through own OTT services increased significantly, while total revenues from services in the electronic communications market in the first half of the year were 3.5 per cent higher than in the same period of 2025.

ZAGREB, 18 September 2026 - The electronic communications market in the Republic of Croatia continued to record growth in the number of connections over very high capacity networks (VHCNs) in the second quarter of 2026. At the same time, the pay-TV market saw an increase in the number of connections through own OTT services, while the use of SMS services on mobile networks and outgoing traffic on fixed networks continued to decline.

More than 523,000 fibre-optic connections

At the end of the second quarter, there were 1,208,441 broadband internet connections. The total number of connections over very high capacity networks reached 665,267, an increase of 99,517 compared with the same period of the previous year. There were 523,888 fibre-optic connections, accounting for 43.31 per cent of all broadband connections.The share of users with contracted access speeds of more than 300 Mbit/s stood at 46.11 per cent of the total number of broadband connections.

Diverging trends in fixed and mobile telephony

The number of users of publicly available telephone services on fixed networks in the second quarter was 3.2 per cent lower than in the same period of the previous year, while total outgoing traffic decreased by 6.8 per cent. The number of connections decreased by 0.1 per cent, to 1,198,635, while revenues increased by 2.3 per cent year on year, reaching €27.3 million. On mobile networks, the number of users of publicly available telephone services increased by 2.4 per cent, to 5,075,372, while outgoing traffic increased by 0.8 per cent. Total revenues from publicly available telephone services increased by 0.3 per cent, to €141.6 million. At the same time, the use of SMS services decreased by 11.9 per cent.

Growth in OTT services in the pay-TV market

The total number of pay-TV connections in the second quarter of 2026 stood at 953,606, an increase of 1.9 per cent compared with the same period of the previous year. The most significant change was recorded in own OTT services, where the number of connections increased by 50.6 per cent year on year. The number of connections using other technologies declined: by 10.7 per cent for cable television, 5.4 per cent for IPTV, 11.9 per cent for satellite television and 16.2 per cent for terrestrial pay-TV. Revenues from pay-TV services amounted to €40.1 million, an increase of 3.5 per cent compared with the same period of the previous year. At the same time, revenues from own OTT services increased by 125.1 per cent, reaching €9.8 million. 
 
Market revenues 3.5 per cent higher in the first half of the year

Total revenues from services in the electronic communications market amounted to €920 million in the first six months of 2026, an increase of 3.5 per cent compared with the same period of 2025. During this period, revenues from services provided over mobile networks increased by 3.37 per cent, while revenues from services provided over fixed networks increased by 3.73 per cent compared with the first half of the previous year. Among individual services, broadband internet access recorded the largest increase in revenues. On fixed networks, revenues from this service amounted to €138,766,737, an increase of 1.37 per cent, while on mobile networks they amounted to €334,911,753, an increase of 5.77 per cent.

Data on market indicators for electronic communications for the second quarter of 2026 are available here.