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Connectivity News 12 April 2025 - 29 May 2025

Fire, Ice, and Fiber: How Iceland’s Internet Leaves the World in the Dust

Fire, Ice, and Fiber: How Iceland’s Internet Leaves the World in the Dust

Fixed fiber dominates Iceland’s broadband, with FTTH at 88.7% of fixed lines and over 93% of homes having gigabit-capable fiber, including at least 1 Gbps nationwide and 10 Gbps in most areas. Iceland is linked internationally by four submarine cables—FARICE-1, DANICE, Greenland Connect, and IRIS (launched in 2023 to Ireland)—totaling 208.8 Tbit/s of capacity, of which about 3 Tbit/s is currently used. Three mobile operators—Síminn, Vodafone Iceland (Sýn), and Nova—provide nationwide 4G/5G, with Nova launching 5G in 2020 and Síminn and Vodafone in 2021. By 2023, 5G signals blanket most towns and transit routes across Iceland, with widespread 4G/5G coverage
29 May 2025
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The Shocking Truth Behind Chile’s Internet Boom: 96% Connected (and Counting)

The Shocking Truth Behind Chile’s Internet Boom: 96% Connected (and Counting)

As of early 2024, 96.5% of Chilean households have internet access, up from about 70.2% in 2015. Fixed broadband subscriptions reached 4.52 million in 2023, or 22.6 per 100 inhabitants. As of late 2023, nearly 70% of fixed connections are fiber-optic (FTTH/B), with copper DSL largely replaced. 96.8% of urban households and 94.5% of rural households have internet access, narrowing the urban–rural gap to about 2 percentage points. Chile launched 5G in December 2021, and by late 2024 there were over 5.3 million 5G users, with roughly 40% of mobile subscriptions 5G-capable. Starlink commands about 58% of Chile’s satellite internet
29 May 2025
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Out of Signal? These Phones Talk to Space! The Truth About Satellite SMS and Satellite Phones

Out of Signal? These Phones Talk to Space! The Truth About Satellite SMS and Satellite Phones

The iPhone 14 introduced Emergency SOS via satellite in September 2022 using the Globalstar network, with a US/Canada launch in November 2022 and expansion to 17 countries by mid-2024. The Huawei Mate 60 Pro, released in August 2023, became the world’s first smartphone to support direct satellite voice calls via China’s Tiantong-1 GEO constellation. Iridium operates 66 active LEO satellites in polar orbits, providing truly worldwide coverage including the poles, with cross-links between satellites. Globalstar is a LEO network with dozens of satellites in ~52° inclination, covering most populated areas but not polar regions. Apple’s Emergency SOS and Messages via
29 May 2025
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Brazil’s Digital Divide: The Real Story Behind Internet Access and the Race to Connect Everyone

Brazil’s Digital Divide: The Real Story Behind Internet Access and the Race to Connect Everyone

As of 2023, about 88% of Brazilians aged 10 or older used the internet, equal to roughly 164 million people. In 2023, about 92.5% of Brazilian households had internet access. Regional disparities exist, with the Central-West around 91% online in 2023 while the North and Northeast hovered around 85%. Fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) has surged, and by late 2024 fiber accounted for about 77% of fixed broadband subscriptions, with about 41.3 million fiber connections out of roughly 53 million fixed lines. 4G coverage is virtually universal, with 4G available in all 5,570 municipalities and over 98% of the population covered. The November
29 May 2025
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Inside Nicaragua’s Digital Frontier: The Truth About Internet Access and Satellite Connectivity

Inside Nicaragua’s Digital Frontier: The Truth About Internet Access and Satellite Connectivity

As of early 2025 Nicaragua had 8.71 million mobile connections, about 125% of the population, with more than 95% of lines capable of 3G/4G broadband. In January 2025, 4.47 million Nicaraguans used the internet, equal to 64.1% of the population. There were about 371,000 fixed broadband subscriptions in 2023, 5.43 per 100 people, with most lines in urban areas and fixed access below 6% nationwide. Since 2023 the government has activated free public Wi‑Fi hotspots in 25 parks, managed by TELCOR and municipalities. By 2023 about 87.4% of the population had 4G coverage and over 94% had 3G coverage, though
29 May 2025
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Connecting the Unconnected: The State of Internet Access in the Central African Republic

Connecting the Unconnected: The State of Internet Access in the Central African Republic

As of January 2024, CAR had 616,600 internet users, 10.6% internet penetration, and about 89% of the population remained offline. In 2024 there were 1.86 million active cellular mobile connections, equating to a 32.0% mobile penetration. About 56% of Central Africans live in rural areas, with only around 14% of households having electricity. The Central African Backbone fiber project delivered a ~900 km national backbone with 11 PoPs, completed in 2023, linking Bangui to Cameroon and the Republic of Congo, and it spawned a Digital Training Center in Bangui (opened 2023) and the Central African Digital Development Agency. Orange Centrafrique
29 May 2025
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Internet Access in the Philippines: A Comprehensive Report

Internet Access in the Philippines: A Comprehensive Report

As of early 2025, about 97.5 million Filipinos used the internet, representing 83.8% of the population. The Philippines is an archipelago of more than 7,600 islands, which makes laying fiber and building cell towers across distant areas difficult and costly. Mobile SIM penetration stood at about 123% by end-2024, with around 120+ million mobile subscriptions in late 2024. Around 16% of Filipinos were still offline at the start of 2025, roughly 18–19 million people, due to access and affordability gaps. Fixed broadband total subscribers in 2024 were about 7 million, with fiber-based services dominating urban areas and Metro Manila having
21 May 2025
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Internet Access in Russia

Internet Access in Russia

As of early 2025, Russia had about 133 million internet users, a penetration rate of 92.2% of the population. Russia’s backbone includes over 100 data centers and 38 Internet Exchange Points, with Moscow and St. Petersburg acting as major hubs. There were 216 million active mobile cellular connections in 2025, equal to about 150% of the population, and about 95% of these connections are broadband. Fixed broadband is dominated by fiber, with FTTH/FTTB accounting for more than 90% of fixed lines in many regions and over 31 million fiber broadband subscribers by 2022. In 2023 Russia had approximately 110 mobile
15 May 2025
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Connected Malaysia 2025: A Complete Guide to Fiber, Mobile, Satellite & Public Internet Access

Connected Malaysia 2025: A Complete Guide to Fiber, Mobile, Satellite & Public Internet Access

JENDELA (Jalinan Digital Negara) runs 2020–2025 and, by 2022 Phase 1 exceeded targets with 4G reaching about 97% of the population and fiber broadband deployed to 7.74 million premises, with Phase 2 targeting 100% population coverage in populated areas by end-2025. 4G coverage is about 97% of populated areas, with roughly 3% in geographies where access remains difficult, particularly in remote Sabah and Sarawak. Starlink Malaysia received a 10-year license in 2023, became commercially available mid-2023, with a monthly RM220 service, hardware kits priced around RM2,300 (standard) or RM11,000 (enterprise), delivering up to about 100 Mbps down and 20–40 ms
15 May 2025
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Internet Access in Singapore: A Comprehensive Overview

Internet Access in Singapore: A Comprehensive Overview

The nationwide fiber backbone, the Next Gen NBN, uses NetLink Trust for passive infrastructure and a structural separation that lets Singtel, StarHub, and M1 jointly serve over 98% of fixed-line subscribers. Singapore’s average fixed broadband speed was about 336 Mbps in January 2025, making it the fastest globally. The government plans a 10 Gbps symmetric nationwide upgrade by 2026, with 10 Gbps trials already underway by MyRepublic. By end-2024, 5G coverage was effectively island-wide, with StarHub reporting >99% outdoor coverage and Singtel delivering full 5G across MRT underground lines. 3G networks were retired in 2024, with M1 shutting down in
15 May 2025
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Internet Access in Phuket: A Tourist-Focused Overview

Internet Access in Phuket: A Tourist-Focused Overview

Phuket has widespread fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) with speeds up to 1 Gbps, and some cases 2 Gbps. AIS announced by mid-2024 that its 5G network reached 95% of Thailand’s population, including Phuket. 5G launched in 2020 and Phuket was among the first areas to receive it, along with Bangkok and Chiang Mai. Patong City launched free citywide Wi‑Fi using Cisco and CAT Telecom, via the SmartCityFreeWiFi network managed by Meraki. AIS tourist SIMs include an 8-day package for about 399 THB with 25 GB of high-speed data, plus 15- and 30-day options. 4G speeds in Phuket typically range 30–100 Mbps, while
15 May 2025
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Wi-Fi on Everest, Firewalls in Lhasa: Inside Tibet’s Internet Revolution

Wi-Fi on Everest, Firewalls in Lhasa: Inside Tibet’s Internet Revolution

A China Mobile 5G base station was installed at Mount Everest base camp at 6,500 meters in 2020, making it the world’s highest 5G site. By 2019, more than 98% of Tibet’s villages had fiber‑optic broadband and 4G mobile coverage due to government investment. By 2018, government universal service projects connected over 5,000 villages with broadband across Tibet. End of 2019 Tibet had about 50,000 mobile base stations, rising to 60,500 by late 2022. By 2023, 5G network coverage extended to all towns in Tibet. By November 2022 Tibet had 1.28 million fixed broadband internet users, with 98% of those
12 April 2025
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