Belgium was one of the most advanced countries in the EU for NGA coverage, ranking third out of all the study countries with 97.1% households covered in 2012. This was well ahead of the EU average for NGA coverage in total and in rural areas. We estimated that nearly all households could access standard and standard fixed services, with over 99% of households able to access DSL broadband services.
Belgium owed its extensive NGA coverage to Docsis 3 cable, which alone covered over 95% of households. VDSL services were also extensive, with 85% of households able to access VDSL services. Note that the reported figure includes all households served by VDSL and is not restricted to those who receive high-speed services. FTTP only covered a small number of households in Belgium. Belgium should have little trouble meeting the Digital Agenda target to deliver high-speed broadband services to all citizens by the end of 2020.
LTE services were launched in Belgium in 2012 and covered over 8% of households by the end of the year. This was one of the few areas in which Belgium fell behind the rest of Europe.
VDSL coverage grew by four percentage points in 2012. Other than the launch of LTE services, this was the biggest shift in coverage in Belgium in 2012.
Clear distinctions in coverage could be observed between the North and South of the country. Whilst both standard and NGA technologies were accessible to the whole of Flanders, southern regions were found to be slightly but consistently under-served. This is due to differences in cable provision across the country.
Point Topic maps broadband coverage in every square kilometre across Europe. For more details, please visit the Broadband Competition Map of Europe page or contact Tim Johnson at tim.johnson@point-topic.com or telephone +44(0)20 3301 3303.