Bosnia-Herzegovina

[BA] Internet Penetration Rate in 2007

IRIS 2008-6:1/31

Dusan Babic

Media Analyst, Sarajevo

The Communications Regulatory Agency (RAK), a single regulator responsible for both the broadcasting and the telecommunications sector in the country, has carried out research on the market of Internet Service Providers (ISP) in Bosnia and Herzegovina for 2007.

Despite television remaining the main source of information for the majority of the country’s population and analogue terrestrial broadcasts still being a primary source of television programming, the digital age is also entering this country.

By 31 December 2007, in Bosnia and Herzegovina there were 60 operating Internet service providers, out of which 55 have participated in the research conducted. The questionnaire results show that in 2007, in Bosnia and Herzegovina, there were 273,752 Internet subscribers. Following the International Telecommunications Union’s (ITU) definition according to which any person of age 16 - 74 using Internet during the year represents an Internet user, the Agency has estimated that in 2007 in Bosnia and Herzegovina there were 1,055,000 Internet users, and the Internet penetration rate in Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2007 was 27.25%.If compared with the 2006 research, the Internet penetration rate has increasedby more than 3 points (See IRIS 2007-7: 7). It should be noted that the last official census was conducted in 1991, and current estimations speculate that the total population in the country is less than 4 million.

The “dial-up” service (includes dial-up and ISDN) was the dominant type of Internet access, that is 69% out of total number of Internet subscribers. The second group includes broadband subscribers, 31% in 2007. The ADSL service is the most represented within broadband Internet access with 13.7% out of total number of subscribers, while subscribers to cable Internet are in second place (10.7%).

When compared to its neighbouring countries – Croatia, Serbia and Montenegro – Bosnia and Herzegovina has improved its Internet penetration rate, currently ranking next to Croatia (35 %), and before Montenegro (19.5 %) and Serbia (16.5 %).

The ITU World Information Society Report 2007 claims that Bosnia and Herzegovina is in the group of economies with medium Digital Opportunity Index (DOI) scores, thanks to good mobile coverage and relatively low prices. More precisely, with an index score of 0.48, Bosnia and Herzegovina ranks 35^th in Europe and 64^th in the world.