CGI.br Survey indicates consolidation of the Internet service provider market in the country

Launched this Thursday during the 13th Internet Infrastructure Week in Brazil, the Survey TIC Providers 2022 identified the growth of medium-sized providers and presented unprecedented data on the adoption of measures for personal data protection in the sector

The 5th edition of TIC Providers, launched this Thursday (7) by the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee (CGI.br), revealed that the proportion of medium-sized companies in the segment (from 50 to 249 employed people) rose from 13% to 17%, an increase of four percentage points between 2020 and 2022. Conversely, the participation of microenterprises (with up to 9 employed people) decreased by 10 percentage points, going from 56% to 46% in the same period. The survey was presented during the 13th Internet Infrastructure Week in Brazil.

The TIC Providers 2022, conducted by the Regional Center for Studies on the Development of the Information Society (Cetic.br) of the Brazilian Network Information Center (NIC.br), also showed that the number of companies operating in the sector decreased from 12,826 to 11,630 from 2020 to 2022.

"In recent years, there has been a trend of mergers and acquisitions and increased interest in investment funds in the sector, which may explain the growth in the participation of medium-sized companies. This demonstrates that consolidation is an ongoing movement in the Brazilian market. Additionally, Brazil continues to be a country with a large number of active providers compared to other countries," analyzes Alexandre Barbosa, manager of Cetic.br.

Optical fiber remains the most prevalent Internet connection technology, and in 2022, it was available from 95% of the providers operating in the national territory. Regarding transmission network infrastructure, the proportion of companies offering access only through proprietary infrastructure decreased from 2020 to 2022 (from 70% to 60%). On the other hand, the proportion of providers adopting a mixed model, with access via both proprietary and third-party infrastructure, increased from 25% to 37% in the same period.

Market Improvement

Another noteworthy data point is that from 2020 to 2022, there was growth in provider participation in Internet Exchange Points (IXP) or in IX.br (Brazil Internet Exchange) – the latter an initiative of NIC.br, responsible for implementing and promoting the necessary infrastructure for direct metropolitan interconnection between networks that make up the Internet in Brazil. Currently, this is the largest set of IXP in the world, with 36 Points distributed across the five Brazilian regions. According to the study, the proportion rose from 30% to 37%.

The survey also identified an increase in providers from the Northeast and Midwest in traffic exchange points during the period. In the first region, the percentage rose from 24% to 38%. The same 14 percentage point increase was observed in the Midwest (from 20% to 34%).

"The presence of providers in IXP effectively improves traffic exchange between providers, which, in practice, can mean a substantial increase in the quality of Internet that reaches service users," evaluates Fabio Senne, TIC research coordinator at Cetic.br.

The survey also detected a significant increase in the offering of IPv6 to customers: 24 percentage points compared to 2020. In 2022, 64% of the market provided the version 6 of the Internet Protocol, compliant with new technologies.

Data and Security

Compared to other segments of the private sector, the Internet provision market is ahead in terms of data protection. According to TIC Providers 2022, 40% of access providers had a department or employees dedicated exclusively to the topic, a proportion that was 23% in companies overall, based on data from the TIC Empresas 2021 survey.

The most cited actions for compliance with the General Data Protection Law (LGPD) were developing a privacy policy that informs how personal data is handled by companies (57%) and conducting security tests against data leaks (58%). The study also identified that 30% of providers appointed a personal data protection officer, while 17% of companies overall adopted the measure.

In terms of security, 23% of providers reported suffering denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks in 2022, indicating stability compared to the previous study (2020). Companies with more than 6,000 customers were targeted by this type of attack in greater proportion than those with a smaller number of customers: 34% compared to 24%.

About the Survey

Conducted since 2011, TIC Providers aims to map the Internet provision sector in Brazil to support strategies aimed at expanding and improving connectivity quality in the country. The survey characterizes segment companies in terms of services offered, market operations, and adoption of technologies. Data for the 5th edition was collected between September 2022 and June 2023. To access the full list of indicators, visit https://cetic.br/pt/pesquisa/provedores/

To watch the launch of TIC Providers 2022, visit: https://www.youtube.com/live/hWK-oZ-J7_E?si=v6Al2wdVDQLReFny

About Cetic.br
The Regional Center for Studies on the Development of the Information Society (Cetic.br), part of NIC.br, is responsible for producing indicators and statistics on internet access and usage in Brazil, providing regular analyses and information on the network's development in the country. Cetic.br|NIC.br is also a Regional Center of Studies under the auspices of UNESCO and marks 18 years of operation in 2023. More information at https://cetic.br/.

About the Brazilian Network Information Center – NIC.br
The Brazilian Network Information Center – NIC.br (https://nic.br/) is a private non-profit civil entity responsible for operating the .br domain, as well as distributing IP numbers and registering Autonomous Systems in the country. NIC.br implements the decisions and projects of the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee - CGI.br since 2005, with all resources raised coming from its predominantly private activities. It carries out actions and projects that benefit the Internet infrastructure in Brazil. NIC.br includes: Registro.br (https://registro.br/), CERT.br (https://cert.br/), Ceptro.br (https://ceptro.br/), Cetic.br (https://cetic.br/), IX.br (https://ix.br/) and Ceweb.br (https://ceweb.br/), as well as projects like Internetsegura.br (https://internetsegura.br/) and the Best Practices Portal for Internet in Brazil (https://bcp.nic.br/). It also hosts the São Paulo W3C Chapter office (https://w3c.br/).

About the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee – CGI.br
The Brazilian Internet Steering Committee is responsible for establishing strategic guidelines related to the use and development of the Internet in Brazil, coordinating and integrating all Internet service initiatives in the country, promoting technical quality, innovation, and dissemination of offered services. Based on multistakeholderism and transparency principles, CGI.br represents a democratic Internet governance model, praised internationally, where all sectors of society participate equitably in its decisions. One of its formulations is the 10 Principles for Internet Governance and Use (https://cgi.br/resolucoes/documento/2009/003). More information at https://cgi.br/.

Press Contacts – NIC.br:

Weber Shandwick
https://webershandwick.com.br/
PABX: (11) 3027-0200 / 3531-4950
Ana Nascimento - anascimento@webershandwick.com - (11) 98670-6579 

Communication Advisory – NIC.br
Carolina Carvalho - Communication Manager - carolcarvalho@nic.br
Thiago Santiago - Communication Coordinator - santiago@nic.br 

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This content was automatically translated with the support of artificial intelligence.