Australia’s telecom and pay-TV services market is projected to grow at a modest CAGR of 0.8 percent, rising from $19.1 billion in 2024 to $19.9 billion by 2029, according to GlobalData. This growth will be supported primarily by the expansion of mobile data and fixed broadband services.
While mobile voice and fixed voice revenues will continue to decline due to the shift toward OTT platforms and the phase-out of circuit-switched services, mobile data revenue is set to grow at a 3.8 percent CAGR. This growth is fueled by increasing 5G adoption and high-ARPU mobile internet plans.
Fixed broadband revenue is also forecast to rise at a 1.2 percent CAGR, backed by the government’s AUD3 billion investment in the NBN and additional AUD800 million from NBN Co to upgrade the fiber network for over 622,000 premises by 2030. Pay-TV revenue, however, is expected to fall as consumers continue cutting the cord and shifting to OTT platforms like Netflix and Stan.
Top operators
Telstra remains Australia’s dominant telecom operator, boasting around 20.7 million mobile subscribers as of August 2024 and more than 3 million fixed‑line households served. Telstra has committed to invest approximately A$800 million over the next four years to expand and modernise its mobile network, including densifying metro cell sites, upgrading to Open RAN‑ready hardware with Ericsson, deploying AI‑based self‑healing network automation, and pursuing satellite‑to‑handset text capability via Starlink for remote coverage. The capex plan also includes expanding intercity fibre routes connecting major capital cities, with several routes under construction and kilometres already laid.
Optus, the second‑largest operator, serves approximately 10.5 million mobile customers as of June 2024 and held nearly A$8.2 billion in operating revenue for the year ending March 2025. In the 2025 financial year, Optus added about 238,000 mobile subscribers, with prepaid growth via its MVNO arm amaysim (which had roughly 1.5 million subscribers) helping to drive total mobile service revenue up ~4 percent.
Optus is accelerating its regional 5G rollout, aiming for around 1,500 active 5G sites by 2028 and more than 2,400 by 2030, offering free trials in regions like Toowoomba to encourage adoption.
TPG Telecom, which includes Vodafone Australia, iiNet and other brands, positions as Australia’s third mobile carrier with about 5.4 million Vodafone mobile subscribers as of February 2025 and a total of around 5.8 million across its mobile brands in earlier data.
TPG Telecom’s networking partnership with Optus has doubled its mobile network footprint virtually overnight, which triggered sharp increases in data usage and prepaid subscriber additions (79,000 new prepaid users), even though it lost postpaid subscribers in late 2024. Its service revenue reached about A$4.7 billion with EBITDA approaching A$1.99 billion in FY2024; it forecasts between A$1.95 and A$2.03 billion for 2025.
Baburajan Kizhakedath
