Characteristics of the internet market in Poland
In 2020, the value of the internet access market in Poland amounted to 4.5 billion zloty, which was an increase compared to the previous year. Households enjoyed a broadband penetration of 122 percent, and the share of enterprises with internet access amounted to 99 percent in 2020.In 2020, 90 percent of households had access to the internet, most often with a fixed broadband connection. Connecting to the internet in Poland is still diversified and depends on the type of household, the size of the place of residence, and the degree of urbanization of the area. Thus, accessing network is more often available to families with children, people living in cities and urban areas, and their favorite location to use the internet is a house.
Polish internet user profile
In 2020, the largest groups of internet users were 16-24-year-olds and 25-34-year-olds. The dominant group of internet users was students and self-employed persons. In 2021, the education structure of internet users changed slightly. The number of users with primary education and lower secondary education increased the most.To connect to the network, nearly six in 10 internet users used mobile devices. Chrome was the most popular browser in the Polish internet market. However, some people still do not see the reason for using the Internet. No need for having access to the Internet at home was the most common reason given by households. Other reasons were: lack of skills and too high costs (equipment and subscription fees). The lack of connection is also caused by reluctance to use the Internet as such.
Internet usage
The internet in Poland is used for various purposes. Most internet users use social media, make online purchases or online payments. The interest in downloading free video and audio content is decreasing. This may be associated with an increase in data transmission speed and availability of content in streaming form, e.g., Netflix, Spotify. As a result, the percentage of internet users subscribing to video-on-demand services reached over 50 percent in 2020.The popularity of mobile internet also increased. It is expected that in 2026 the number of mobile phone users in Poland will reach over 30 million. The percentage of people connecting to the network via mobile devices is already higher than the rate of people using PCs. While accessing the internet, most mobile internet users used mobile phones or smartphones, while a significant minority used a tablet or smartwatch.
