Kuwait’s mobile phone market remains stable as fixed-line usage continues to decline
The mobile phone market in Kuwait witnessed relative stability in 2024, with total mobile data subscriptions — including calls and internet — decreasing slightly by 0.5 percent to 8.071 million subscribers, compared to 8.113 million in 2023, a decline of 42,090 users.
According to the latest “Communications and Information Technology” report issued by the Central Administration of Statistics, prepaid subscriptions dropped by 2.8 percent, or about 124,780 users, bringing the total to 4.297 million.
In contrast, postpaid subscriptions rose by 9.4 percent, adding approximately 154,900 users for a total of 1.795 million. Overall, the number of cellular subscriptions — both prepaid and postpaid — grew by 0.5 percent to reach nearly 6.1 million subscribers.
The report showed a decline in mobile broadband (router) subscriptions, which fell by 3.52 percent, or 72,250 subscribers, to 1.978 million compared to 2.05 million in 2023.
For fixed internet services, corporate broadband subscriptions increased marginally by 0.12 percent to 14,845, while individual subscriptions decreased by 7.2 percent, settling at 31,750. This brought the total number of fixed-line internet subscriptions (both corporate and individual) to 46,596, reflecting a 5 percent drop from the previous year.
DSL subscriptions also continued their downward trend, falling by 23.9 percent to 7,011, compared to 9,213 in 2023. Mobile internet continued to dominate the market, accounting for 97.7 percent of total internet subscriptions, while fixed internet made up just 2.3 percent.
The report highlighted a sustained decline in fixed-line telecommunications over the past nine years, with total fixed-line telephone usage down 69.4 percent by the end of 2024 compared to 2015.
Despite this decline in use, the Ministry of Transport’s service revenues rose sharply to 42.65 billion dinars, marking a 78.5 percent increase compared to 2023.
At the end of last year, the number of active telephones connected to switchboards reached 143,700, while the total capacity stood at 572,600 lines, down from 849,000 lines in 2015. These figures underscore the continued shift away from traditional landlines toward mobile and digital communication methods.
The report noted a significant drop in international calls via fixed lines, which fell to 6.5 million calls totaling 17.04 million minutes in 2024, compared to 92.9 million calls and 254.1 million minutes in 2015.
Consequently, international call revenues declined from 36.8 million dinars in 2015 to just 2.125 million dinars last year. Calls to Gulf countries accounted for 3.5 million calls totaling 9.2 million minutes, generating 927,070 dinars in revenues.
Egypt ranked first among the top 10 countries in terms of international call volume, with 1.2 million calls worth 55.68 million dinars, followed by the United Arab Emirates with 1.1 million calls worth 34.09 million dinars.
The total international call bills across the top 10 countries amounted to 345.88 million dinars, illustrating ongoing demand for cross-border communication despite the widespread shift to online platforms and smart applications.
