The telecoms sectors in Guernsey and Jersey generated over £170m in turnover, employed more than 800 people and contributed in excess of £21m in tax revenues in 2019, according to the latest annual report, compiled by Statistics Jersey.
The report was commissioned jointly by the Jersey Competition Regulatory Authority (JCRA) and the Guernsey Competition and Regulatory Authority (GCRA) who have signed a three year Service Level Agreement with Statistics Jersey to produce the report. The report shows the contribution of the sector to the Channel Islands’ economies and provides an overview of the consumer experience.
The highlights of the report are as follows for the telecoms industry in the Channel Islands in 2019:
- generated turnover, including fixed, mobile, Internet access, associated services and the sale of handsets of £171m; £64m in Guernsey and £107m in Jersey
- employed 804 full time equivalent staff; 212 in Guernsey and 592 in Jersey
- data usage by consumers continues to rise rapidly, following the trend seen in the UK, with fixed broadband customers transferring 183 Gbytes of data in Guernsey and 209 Gbytes of data in Jersey on average per month
- total number of mobile subscriptions rose by 1% to 199,115 but revenues decreased by 4.1% in Guernsey and 1.2% in Jersey
- 2.5% of registered mobile numbers switched or “ported” between service providers in 2019. Sure has lost the highest number of mobile subscribers, with JT making the highest net gains in mobile subscribers in both Islands
- average porting times for consumers switching mobile service provider was at 1.2 working days in both Guernsey and Jersey20. These times compare to the European Commission’s Universal Service Directive, which requires operators to provide porting within 1 working day
The report is based on an annual survey designed jointly by Statistics Jersey and the Competition Authorities and includes an overview of the telecommunications market as well as detailed analysis of specific networks such as fixed line broadband, the mobile market and an overview of off-Island links. The Competition Authorities would like to thank all operators for their contributions to this report.
Tim Ringsdore, Chief Executive of the JCRA said, “This report provides a comprehensive overview of the contribution of the telecoms market to Jersey’s economy and the impact on Jersey’s consumers. We would like to thank and congratulate Statistics Jersey for a report that is both in depth and robust.”
Michael Byrne, Chief Executive of the GCRA added, “Telecoms is one of the most significant markets we are tasked with regulating and we want to ensure the information we gather is robust and entirely independent. This partnership enables us to present a more accurate picture of the market to key stakeholders including politicians and government officials who have to make policy decisions and to consumers.”
The full report by Statistics Jersey can be read here.
