Alexandra Borgeaud
Research expert covering cybersecurity and tech in Latin America
Telefónica - statistics & facts
From Spain to Brazil, Germany to Uruguay, Telefónica keeps millions of people connected through the mobile, fixed, and broadband services it provides in 12 countries across two continents. Beyond telecommunications, Telefónica has diversified its activities over recent years through its digital business unit, Telefónica Tech. Firmly convinced that digitalization is not only changing all areas of modern life, but also offers outstanding opportunities for a better future, the company is putting advanced technologies such as Internet of Things (IoT), Big Data, and Artificial Intelligence (AI) at the service of companies and public administrations to improve efficiency and resilience.
A hundred-year history
Initially founded in Madrid in 1924 as Compañía Telefónica Nacional de España, the company has a solid presence in Spain, as well as in the rest of Europe and Latin America, making it one of the leading telecommunication companies in the world. The firm’s major brands include familiar names such as Movistar, O2 and Vivo, with the Telefónica name serving as the corporate brand While Movistar targets the Spanish-speaking market, O2 provides telecom services in Germany and the United Kingdom (UK), with Vivo operating in Brazil. Telefónica’s services vary from telephony and broadband networks to Pay TV services and other digital solutions. Over the past years, Telefónica’s revenue fluctuated according to the company’s financial transactions and spin-offs, although there has been a downward trend since 2016. In 2023, Telefónica recorded a revenue worth just over 40 billion euros, down from 50 billion euros a decade earlier. As expected, in 2023, around a third of the company’s revenue was generated in Spain, while another half was generated through Telefónica’s operations in Hispanic America and Brazil.Diversification is the key
As mobile has slowly become the mainstream communication method globally, the number of Telefónica's fixed-line telephony accesses have unsurprisingly declined. By contrast, the company has managed to maintain its number of prepaid and contract mobile subscribers, while significantly increasing the amount of data and internet accesses, distributed between broadband and fiber. To ensure it continues riding the wave of digitalization, Telefónica has continued to expand its 5G offering in its four main markets: Spain, Brazil, Germany, and the UK. Through its digital business unit, Telefónica Tech, the company is also investing in innovative technologies to provide organizations with cybersecurity, cloud, and AI-related solutions to improve their operations, constituting the surest way to remain competitive in such a fierce market.
