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July 2026 Edition

- News from our members

- Telecom Digest:

Europe’s fibre coverage rises, but 2030 gaps remain
Digital Networks Act moves into sharper regulatory scrutiny
France nears full fibre coverage as take-up keeps rising
Ireland’s FTTP take-up rises as gigabit coverage reaches 91%
Germany’s fibre base grows, but DSL still dominates
Spain’s FTTH base grows as mobile lines near 63 million
Poland sets digitalisation strategy through 2035
FTTH Council Europe widens focus under new leadership

- Next events from the FTTH Council Europe

NEWS FROM OUR MEMBERS

50G PON and Network Slicing Set to Transform the Future of Fiber Networks

Calix VP Mike Emmendorfer highlights how 50G PON and network slicing can help broadband providers boost capacity, reduce latency, and support residential, business, and transport services on a single network. The approach enables service differentiation, new revenue opportunities, and a seamless evolution from existing GPON and XGS-PON deployments.

6 Ways to Faster, More Efficient Fiber Broadband Deployment

Speed and efficiency are key to scaling FTTH. From smarter planning to streamlined installation, discover six practical ways operators can accelerate fiber broadband deployment while reducing costs and complexity.

Homes Passed to Homes Connected: Redefining the Economics of Fibre Rollout

The fibre industry is shifting focus from how quickly homes are passed to how efficiently they’re connected. As deployments scale, operators are prioritising activation readiness to reduce cost, complexity and delays. Ultimately, fibre delivers value not when it reaches homes, but when customers are connected seamlessly and cost-effectively.

4 Key Lessons for Scaling FTTH Deployment After Copper Switch-Off

As copper switch-off programs accelerate across Europe, the focus is shifting from why fiber is needed to how FTTH can be deployed at scale. This blog explores four practical lessons that help operators accelerate migration, simplify deployment, improve interoperability, and prepare networks for future growth.

From Fragmentation to Scale: What the UK Can Learn from Europe's FTTH Playbook

As Full Fibre rollout accelerates across the UK, attention is turning from coverage to long-term adoption. This article explores what the UK can learn from Europe's most mature FTTH markets, examining how policy, competition and customer migration have helped drive sustainable fibre growth and what that means for the UK's next phase.

The stretch of the FTTH network from the optical wall outlet to your router

How does ultra-fast internet actually reach your home devices? Discover the role of the optical wall outlet and the ONT (Optical Network Terminal), the two key components that allow FTTH technology to deliver high-speed, stable, and reliable connectivity from the network all the way to your router. Find out more on Open Fiber’s website.

Connectivity Marketplaces: Reducing Friction in the Telecom Supply Chain

Connectivity aggregators and digital marketplaces are emerging as a response to growing complexity in the telecom supply chain. This article explores how API-first automation, BSS foundations and open access standards can help reduce friction across wholesale and B2B connectivity services.

Beyond Speed: The Trends That Are Defining 2026

A mid-year broadband outlook exploring how ISPs are moving beyond speed claims toward more reliable and intelligent home connectivity, with trends including managed Wi-Fi, hybrid access and the transition from Wi-Fi 7 toward Wi-Fi 8.

TELECOM DIGEST

Europe’s fibre coverage rises, but 2030 gaps remain

Europe’s Digital Decade connectivity picture is becoming clearer: fibre is now the most widespread fixed broadband technology, but the path to 2030 still depends on faster deployment and stronger national execution. The Commission’s 2025 connectivity coverage report shows FTTP reaching 74,1% of EU27 households, fixed VHCN coverage at 85,6% and basic 5G at 96,8%, while 5G in the 3,4–3,8 GHz band reached 74,8%. The wider State of the Digital Decade assessment warns that infrastructure gaps remain, with fibre rollout, semiconductors and computing capacity still behind the EU’s 2030 targets. The figures point to a market where coverage gains are increasingly tied to copper retirement, fibre-first strategies and the ability of Member States to turn roadmaps into concrete investment measures.

Digital Networks Act moves into sharper regulatory scrutiny

The Digital Networks Act is moving from broad political ambition into the harder phase of regulatory design. At the Telecommunications Council on 9 June, ministers welcomed progress on the proposal as a basis for further work, while calling for clearer rules, simpler procedures and careful treatment of national market conditions, including the copper-to-fibre transition. One day later, BEREC presented its assessment of the proposal, supporting the objective of modernising Europe’s connectivity framework but warning that the future regime must strengthen the internal market without adding unnecessary complexity. The debate now centres on how to encourage investment in advanced networks while preserving legal certainty, national competences on spectrum and security, and a workable framework for operators.

France nears full fibre coverage as take-up keeps rising

France’s fixed broadband market is moving into a more mature phase, with fibre now close to national coverage and firmly established as the country’s dominant fixed access technology. Arcep’s latest market update shows that 42,8 million premises were passed by fibre at the end of March 2026, equal to 94,9% of the 45,1 million premises in France, leaving 2,3 million still to be connected. The shift is also visible in subscriptions: fibre reached 27,7 million lines, representing 84% of all fixed internet subscriptions and 94% of very high-speed broadband subscriptions. Growth continues, but at a slower pace, with 600.000 new fibre subscriptions in Q1 2026 compared with 730.000 one year earlier, pointing to a market where the remaining challenge is increasingly about final coverage gaps and customer migration.

Ireland's FTTP take-up rises as gigabit coverage reaches 91%

Ireland’s fixed broadband market is moving deeper into the gigabit phase, with FTTP now the country’s most purchased broadband technology and a growing share of customers choosing higher-speed services. ComReg’s Q1 2026 market report sets out that FTTP subscriber lines reached 1,09 million, representing 62% of all fixed broadband lines, up from 53% a year earlier. FTTP is now available to 86% of premises, while gigabit broadband reaches 91%, with 52% of premises passed by FTTP already using an active fibre service. Speed adoption is also shifting upwards: 72% of fixed broadband lines are now at or above 500 Mb/s, and 26% are at or above 1 Gb/s. Mobile demand is rising in parallel, with 5G subscriptions up 52% year-on-year to 3,1 million. The figures point to a market where the next stage of fibre progress is increasingly measured not only by network availability, but by take-up, speed migration and the ability to translate gigabit coverage into everyday usage.

Germany's fibre base grows, but DSL still dominates

Germany’s telecom market is showing steady fibre progress, although the fixed broadband base remains heavily shaped by legacy infrastructure. The Bundesnetzagentur’s 2025 telecommunications annual report shows that operators invested around €15,3 billion in fixed assets during the year, broadly in line with 2024, with fibre and mobile networks remaining the main investment priorities. Active FttH/FttB connections rose from 5,3 million to 6,4 million, lifting fibre’s share of active fixed broadband lines from 13,7% to 16,5%, while DSL declined from 61,1% to 58,5%. Demand is also shifting upwards: connections below 100 Mbit/s fell to 15,2 million, while faster lines increased to 23,6 million, including 3 million with maximum speeds of at least 1 Gbit/s. The figures point to a market where fibre take-up is improving, but copper migration remains central to Germany’s next phase of broadband transformation.

Spain's FTTH base grows as mobile lines near 63 million

Spain’s telecom market continued to expand in May 2026, with CNMC figures pointing to steady fibre growth alongside a large and highly concentrated mobile base. Fixed broadband lines increased by 49.223 during May to reach 19,83 million accesses, while FTTH added 60.486 new lines and reached 18,1 million subscriptions. The mobile market reached 62,96 million lines, with Movistar, Vodafone and MASORANGE accounting for 85,6% of the total, or 98,1% when DIGI is included. Mobile portability fell by 6,6% year-on-year, suggesting a market where fibre migration continues but competitive switching is moderating.

Poland sets digitalisation strategy through 2035

Poland has placed digital transformation on a longer institutional track, with a State Digitalisation Strategy running to 2035 and designed to give public-sector digital policy greater continuity. The strategy, adopted by the Council of Ministers on 9 June 2026, sets a broad framework for improving citizens’ quality of life through digitalisation, while aligning government action across areas such as electronic communications, cybersecurity, public e-services, digital identity, cloud computing, open data and AI. Its relevance for connectivity lies in the way digital infrastructure is treated as an enabling layer for public services, secure data exchange and national digital resilience, rather than as a standalone telecom objective.

FTTH Council Europe widens focus under new leadership

The FTTH Council Europe’s 2026 Spring General Assembly confirmed a renewed leadership team and a broader committee structure, signalling how the organisation is positioning fibre within a wider connectivity agenda. Stefano Fogli, Director Technology and Solutions at Adtran, was appointed President, alongside new Vice-Presidential roles covering Public Affairs, Strategy and Membership. The Council also moved to seven committees, with new areas covering Data Centre & Data Centre Interconnection and Investments & ESG, while its expanded remit now includes residential access, HFC-to-fibre migration, data centre connectivity and Passive Optical LAN.

NEXT EVENTS

In-building fibre deployment is critical to FTTH roll-out, but MDUs remain complex due to fragmented surveys, field data, material planning, documentation, and operational handovers. This session explores how digital workflows, 3D-based building documentation, and smarter in-building design can create a reliable view from initial survey to final as-built records.

With better insight and traceability, operators can reduce rework, site visits, material waste, and deployment costs. The focus is on accelerating fibre adoption, improving customer activation, and turning fibre infrastructure into scalable, profitable, long-term value. Practical examples will show how TKI’s NET Inhouse supports this approach in real deployment environments. Secure your spot now!

Building on the momentum and achievements of Amsterdam, the 2027 edition of the FTTH Conference will deliver an even more dynamic programme, valuable networking opportunities, and in-depth discussions on the future of digital infrastructure, innovation, and full-fibre deployment.

Save the date and stay tuned for upcoming announcements, speaker updates, and event highlights.

#FibreHorizon is the FTTH Council Europe's monthly selection

of digital and fibre-related news.

For more information, check our website or contact us.

About Us

The FTTH Council Europe is an industry organisation with a mission to advance ubiquitous full fibre-based connectivity to the whole of Europe.

Our vision is that fibre connectivity will transform and enhance the way we live, do business and interact, connecting everyone and everything, everywhere. Fibre is the future-proof, climate-friendly infrastructure which is a crucial prerequisite for safeguarding Europe’s global competitiveness while playing a leading global role in sustainability.

The FTTH Council Europe consists of more than 170 member companies.

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