Croatian Regulatory Authority for Network Industries

The coverage with and access to the 5G network in Croatia has grown since the summer of 2021, when licenses for the 5G frequency range were issued, to 60-70%, and a new auction is being prepared for the existing frequencies, to be held in early 2023, said Tonko Obuljen, Chairman of the Council at HAKOM.

HAKOM, the Croatian Regulatory Authority for Network Industries, will organize a new auction on the allocation of spectrum frequencies for the development of 5G infrastructure at the end of this year, and at the beginning of 2023 at the latest.

HAKOM notes that total investment in the Croatian electronic communications market in 2021 reached HRK 3.01 billion, which is an increase of 20.5 percent compared to the previous year.

New information on data traffic in Croatia shows an exceptional increase in GB consumption and use per average inhabitant in the last three years. Thus, in the third quarter, i.e. from July to the end of September, 40 GB of traffic was used per connection.

Telecom companies generate higher revenue from data services than telephony. The total telephone service revenue of major telcos in the three spring months of 2021 amounted to HRK 1.17 billion, most of which relating to mobile phones.

In just three months, from April to June 2021, 664.8 million gigabytes of data traffic were consumed in Croatia, HAKOM analytics reports, which clearly marks the beginning of a strong growth in “internet spending”, to be intensified with the deployment of 5G technology.

The public auction has been completed and the 700 MHz, 3600 MHz and 26 GHz bands were awarded at the national level, and 3600 MHz at the regional level.

The latest HAKOM data shows that in the first three months of this year we made significantly more calls via mobile services than in the same period in 2020.

The Croatian Regulatory Authority for Network Industries (HAKOM) is working intensively towards laying the groundwork for full 5G deployment.