While Free Mobile's massive growth to 15.8 million subscribers in 2023 might grab headlines, the real story is found in how its relentless innovation and competitive strategies have reshaped the entire French telecom market from pricing to fiber adoption.
Key Takeaways
- As of December 2023, Free Mobile reported 15.8 million mobile subscribers in France, marking a 4.2% year-over-year growth driven by competitive pricing strategies.
- Free's fixed broadband subscribers reached 6.7 million by Q4 2023, with a net addition of 250,000 customers during the year.
- In 2022, Free had 22.5 million total customers across mobile and fixed services in France.
- Free's 2023 revenue hit 6.8 billion euros, up 8.5% from 2022.
- EBITDAaL for Free group was 2.1 billion euros in 2023, with 12% margin.
- Free Mobile's revenue grew to 4.2 billion euros in 2023.
- Free covers 99% of French population with 4G as of 2023.
- Free's 5G network reached 85% outdoor coverage in urban areas by end 2023.
- Free deployed over 25,000 5G sites in France by Q4 2023.
- Free holds 4th place in French mobile market with 21% share in 2023.
- Free's fixed broadband market share: 19.5% in France 2023.
- In urban areas, Free captures 25% of mobile subscribers 2023.
- Free launched Freebox Pop in 2020, now with 1.2 million users by 2023.
- Free Mobile's Series Pass offers unlimited data for 15.99 euros/month to 5 million subs 2023.
- Freebox Delta, premium fiber box, sold 800,000 units since 2022 launch by 2023.
Free Mobile is growing strongly with competitive pricing across France.
Financial Metrics
- Free's 2023 revenue hit 6.8 billion euros, up 8.5% from 2022.
- EBITDAaL for Free group was 2.1 billion euros in 2023, with 12% margin.
- Free Mobile's revenue grew to 4.2 billion euros in 2023.
- Net profit for Iliad (Free's parent) reached 450 million euros in 2023.
- Free's capital expenditures totaled 1.9 billion euros in 2023 for network rollout.
- Fixed services revenue for Free: 2.6 billion euros in 2023, up 6%.
- Free's debt stood at 5.2 billion euros end of 2023.
- ARPU for Freebox fixed services averaged 32 euros monthly in 2023.
- Free's 2022 EBITDA was 1.95 billion euros.
- Cash flow from operations: 1.4 billion euros for Free in 2023.
- Free Mobile's EBITDAaL margin improved to 42% in Q4 2023.
- Iliad Group's market cap reached 8.5 billion euros in early 2024.
- Free's R&D investment: 250 million euros in 2023.
- Dividend payout: Iliad announced 0.50 euros per share for 2023.
- Free's revenue per employee: 450,000 euros in 2023.
- Q1 2024 revenue growth: 7% YoY to 1.7 billion euros.
- Free's gross margin on services: 55% in 2023.
- Tax payments by Free group: 180 million euros in 2023.
- Free's 5G spectrum auction spend: 310 million euros in 2020.
- Operating expenses rose 5% to 3.2 billion euros in 2023.
- Free's equity ratio improved to 28% in 2023.
- Mobile revenue share of total: 62% for Free in 2023.
- Free invested 1.2 billion euros in fiber deployment in 2023.
- Customer acquisition cost for Free Mobile: 120 euros per new sub in 2023.
- Free's 2023 sales growth in Italy (as part of group): 25%.
- Freebox revenue per user: 38 euros/month average in 2023.
Financial Metrics Interpretation
Free is clearly running a high-performance engine, managing to rev revenue and profit nicely while simultaneously pouring billions into its network, proving that in the telecom race you can spend lavishly on the future and still keep a healthy amount of fuel in the tank today.
Market Position
- Free holds 4th place in French mobile market with 21% share in 2023.
- Free's fixed broadband market share: 19.5% in France 2023.
- In urban areas, Free captures 25% of mobile subscribers 2023.
- Free overtook SFR in mobile subscribers, reaching 2nd place behind Orange in Q4 2023.
- Brand perception score for Free: 78/100 in 2023 CSA survey.
- Free's NPS (Net Promoter Score): 45 in French telecom 2023.
- Market share growth: Free gained 2.1 points in mobile PDQ 2023.
- Free leads low-cost segment with 35% share in prepaid mobile 202 disrupted.
- Competitor gap: Free trails Orange by 8 million subs but closing in 2023.
- Free's share in fiber market: 22% of new connections 2023.
- Customer satisfaction ranking: Free #2 in fixed broadband 2023 Ariase.
- Free's position in enterprise telecom: 15% market share 2023.
- Youth market (18-24): Free holds 28% share in 2023.
- Free entered Italian market as #4 operator with 1% share start 2023.
- Price leadership: Free offers lowest average plan price, 40% below avg 2023.
- Free's convergence bundles hold 18% of multi-play market 2023.
- Regulatory fines impact: Free faced 10 million euros in penalties 2023.
- Free's ad spend: 150 million euros to boost market presence 2023.
- Partnership deals: Free with 20 MVNOs covering 5% indirect share 2023.
- Free ranks #1 in value-for-money perception by 55% consumers 2023.
- Free's mobile market share in Paris region: 24% in 2023.
- Fixed market challenger status: Free #3 behind Orange/SFR 2023.
Market Position Interpretation
Free has cleverly disrupted the French telecom market by playing the value-for-money maestro, orchestrating a climb to second place in mobile by charming urbanites and the youth, all while its low-cost symphony keeps Orange glancing nervously over its shoulder.
Network Infrastructure
- Free covers 99% of French population with 4G as of 2023.
- Free's 5G network reached 85% outdoor coverage in urban areas by end 2023.
- Free deployed over 25,000 5G sites in France by Q4 2023.
- Fiber optic network length: 120,000 km for Free in 2023.
- Free's average 4G download speed: 120 Mbps nationwide in 2023.
- 3.5 GHz 5G spectrum held by Free: 130 MHz nationwide.
- Free's fiber eligible homes: 18 million in 2023.
- Number of Free mobile antennas: 38,000 across France in 2023.
- Free's 5G upload speed average: 25 Mbps in tests 2023.
- Rural 4G coverage by Free: 92% of population in 2023.
- Free invested in 1,500 new fiber POPs in 2023.
- Latency on Free's 5G network: under 10ms in 70% of zones 2023.
- Free's international cable connections: 5 subsea cables landing in France.
- 5G Standalone (SA) deployment in 15 major cities by Free in 2023.
- Free's network energy consumption: 450 GWh annually in 2023.
- Number of Free WiFi hotspots: 12 million via partners in 2023.
- Free fiber deployment speed: 2 million new homes connected in 2023.
- 700 MHz low-band 5G coverage: 75% population by Free 2023.
- Free's core network capacity: 100 Tbps in 2023.
- Indoor 5G coverage in buildings: 60% for Free subscribers 2023.
- Free's satellite backhaul sites: 2,500 in remote areas 2023.
- Peak 5G speed recorded on Free: 1.2 Gbps in Lyon 2023.
Network Infrastructure Interpretation
While Free has impressively connected nearly every corner of France, their 5G upload speeds suggest that sending a high-resolution meme might still require the patience of a saint.
Product Offerings
- Free launched Freebox Pop in 2020, now with 1.2 million users by 2023.
- Free Mobile's Series Pass offers unlimited data for 15.99 euros/month to 5 million subs 2023.
- Freebox Delta, premium fiber box, sold 800,000 units since 2022 launch by 2023.
- 5G plans from Free start at 19.99 euros with 150GB data, adopted by 40% of new subs 2023.
- Freebox Ultra with 8K TV decoder launched 2023, 200,000 pre-orders.
- OQEE by Free streaming service has 3 million users integrated in boxes 2023.
- Unlimited mobile plan at 9.99 euros retains 70% of Free's postpaid base 2023.
- Free Pro business fiber plans: 500Mbps up to 8Gbps, 250,000 subs 2023.
- WiFi 6 routers deployed to 4 million Freebox users by 2023.
- Free's eSIM adoption: 15% of new mobile activations in 2023.
- Revolution bundle (mobile+fixed+TV): 2.5 million households 2023.
- 5G fixed wireless access offered to 1 million rural homes 2023.
- Freebox Mini 4K with Android TV: 1.5 million units 2023.
- Cloud gaming via Free: integrated in 20% of plans, 600,000 users 2023.
- NFT marketplace access bundled in premium plans for 100,000 users 2023.
- VoIP calls included in 95% of Free fixed plans, 6 million lines 2023.
- Multi-SIM option used by 25% of Free families, 1.8 million lines 2023.
- Freebox Server storage: average 2TB per user for 3 million 2023.
- Roaming included in all Free mobile plans to 110 destinations 2023.
- 100% fiber plans with 5Gbps symmetric speed launched to 500,000 homes 2023.
- Player optical module for gaming in Delta boxes: 300,000 adopters 2023.
- Free's IoT plans for connected homes: 400,000 devices 2023.
- Customizable data boosters added to 1 million plans 2023.
- Freebox Devialet edition audio boxes: 150,000 sold since 2021.
- VPN service bundled in premium mobile plans for 800,000 users 2023.
Product Offerings Interpretation
Free, having clearly decided that offering everything to everyone all at once was the only logical business model, now operates like a telecom casino where the house always wins by constantly upgrading the ante with new gadgets and bundles that somehow still manage to feel like a rebellious bargain.
Subscriber Base
- As of December 2023, Free Mobile reported 15.8 million mobile subscribers in France, marking a 4.2% year-over-year growth driven by competitive pricing strategies.
- Free's fixed broadband subscribers reached 6.7 million by Q4 2023, with a net addition of 250,000 customers during the year.
- In 2022, Free had 22.5 million total customers across mobile and fixed services in France.
- Free Mobile's postpaid subscriber base grew to 14.2 million in mid-2023, up 5% from the previous year.
- By end of 2021, Free's overall subscriber count stood at 21.1 million, including 6.1 million fixed-line users.
- Free added 180,000 mobile subscribers in Q1 2024 alone.
- As of Q3 2023, Free's mobile churn rate was 1.1%, lower than the industry average of 1.5%.
- Free's prepaid mobile subscribers numbered 1.6 million in 2023.
- In 2020, during the pandemic, Free gained 450,000 new fixed subscribers.
- Free's enterprise subscribers reached 300,000 by 2023 across professional mobile and fixed plans.
- Q2 2023 saw Free add 120,000 broadband customers, boosted by fiber promotions.
- Free Mobile's 5G subscribers hit 2.1 million by late 2023.
- Total Free group customers in France exceeded 23 million in early 2024.
- Free's residential fixed subscribers were 6.4 million in 2022.
- Mobile ARPU for Free stood at 9.50 euros in Q4 2023.
- Free gained 90,000 mobile postpaid users in Q3 2022.
- By 2019, Free had 13.5 million mobile lines active.
- Free's fiber subscribers surpassed 3 million in 2023.
- International roaming subscribers using Free's plans numbered 500,000 in 2023.
- Free's total B2B subscribers grew 15% YoY to 350,000 in 2023.
- In Q1 2023, Free added 200,000 total new subscribers across segments.
- Free Mobile's market penetration reached 22% of French mobile market in 2023.
- DSL subscribers for Free declined to 3.2 million by 2023 due to fiber migration.
- Free's 4G subscribers comprised 90% of its mobile base in 2023.
- Youth subscribers under 25 on Free plans: 4.1 million in 2023.
- Free's multi-play households (mobile + fixed) reached 5.8 million in 2023.
- Senior subscribers over 65: 1.2 million on Free services in 2023.
- Free's NFT-related subscribers (via partnerships): 50,000 in 2023.
- Regional subscribers in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur: 1.8 million for Free in 2023.
Subscriber Base Interpretation
Though it may seem like Free is just giving away phone plans, they've cleverly built a subscriber army of over 23 million by turning France's telecom market into a relentless bargain hunt.
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