Both domestic and international European wholesale revenues fell between 2008 and 2009, in both the voice and non-voice markets, according to the top 24 operators' 2009 financial results.

 

The region's wholesalers should re-evaluate the effectiveness of their business models in light of these declines.  

 

European wholesale revenues declined at a slightly faster rate than total wholesale revenues.

 

The European wholesale market was worth more than $48.8 billion in 2009, down 9.8% year-on-year. The total wholesale revenues of the 24 telcos that we studied declined by 7.8% between 2008 and 2009; their European retail revenues declined by 8.4%; and their total revenues declined by 3.9%.  

 

European wholesale voice revenues in 2009 reached $23.3 billion, while wholesale revenues from all non-voice services totaled $25.5 billion. In our previous analysis (2007–08) voice represented 60% of total European wholesale revenues, while in this analysis voice revenues were only 48% of the total.  

 

This is the first time that European wholesale voice revenues have been exceeded by non-voice revenues. We expect that this difference will grow in the coming years as wholesale voice prices continue to fall and wholesalers increase their data service portfolios. 

 

We found that 17 carriers with a European domestic arm have decreased their dependence on voice services in their domestic wholesale markets.