Belgian prices for telecom services to consumers have gone down over the past year on a relative basis, according to Belgian regulator Bipt‘s international comparative price study for 2022.

Belgium is, for this type of service, in a generally intermediate position (i.e. neither cheap nor excessively expensive) compared to its neighbors. On the other hand, with regard to fixed and converged telecom needs, the positioning of Belgium has changed little compared to 2021, and consumers in country continue to pay considerably more than most of their neighbors as their needs for telecom services are increasing.

BIPT has again compared the prices of residential telecommunications services in country to those practiced by Belgium neighbors (Germany, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom). The study is a snapshot based on prices in effect in October 2022.
As regards mobile services, the situation in Belgium has developed favorably compared to 2021. The minimum amounts to be paid to meet data needs ranging from 10 to 50 GB have effect decreased significantly over the past year, so that Belgium finds itself now in an intermediate position (neither cheap nor excessively expensive) in relation to its neighbors for mobile data needs up to 50 GB per month.

On the other hand, Belgium remains particularly expensive for volumes above 50 GB, for which little progress has been made observed compared to last year.

With regard to fixed and bundled services, the update of the study carried out in 2021 shows that the situation has changed little in one year: on the one hand, Belgium remains significantly more expensive than France and the United Kingdom, which are by far the cheapest countries among those studied; on the other hand, if it is quite well aligned with the Netherlands, Luxembourg and Germany in terms of needs Internet only and 2P “Internet and Mobile” combined, it continues to be more and more expensive by compared to these same countries as the number of services (television and/or fixed telephony or mobile) to satisfy increases.

In addition, the gap separating Belgium from the nearest country preceding it immediately for each profile has increased in terms of bundles without subscriptions mobile (fixed services only).

Finally, with regard to the effects of inflation, it should be noted that: Belgian prices for telecom services

• With two exceptions among the eight brands taken into account for Belgium, nominal prices for mobile services alone have not increased despite the high inflation at which the country has been facing for more than a year. By giving consumers more choice and increasing pressure on prices, increased competition in this market segment (and more specifically the expansion of the offer with cheaper products from operators and their low-cost brands) has contributed to maintaining (even in some improvement) of the position of Belgium in relation to its neighbours.
• On the other hand, with regard to fixed and bundled products, operators have increased the prices of most of their products over the past year. To justify these increases, the operators have put forward the argument of the substantial increases in costs (mainly wages, energy and prices of technological equipment) to which they are subject. It should be noted, however, that such cost increases have not so far hardly been passed on to consumers of mobile services alone, which is a market segment where the competitive dynamic is stronger.