Digi has continued on its quest to conquer the carrier status quo in new markets, this time in Belgium, where it has gone all-in on highly disruptive debut pricing accompanied by a basic and largely unadorned multiplay portfolio.

While launch limitations will be exploited by competitors, the challenger’s audacious entry will force them to re-evaluate their default modes of productising, packaging, and pricing their core portfolio staples.

Related Company Profiles

View all

An entry-level combination of 500 Mbps/500 Mbps fibre with a 15 GB mobile line from Digi will cost a mere €15 each month. The new Belgian operator had pledged “unprecedented prices” in its pre-marketing phase, and it has certainly delivered on that promise.

Subscribing to alternate entry-level mobile and fibre options with roughly equivalent core usage parameters from the country’s three main carrier competitors under their primary brands starts in the monthly vicinity of €70 (non-promotional) – although unlike Digi’s proposal, rival flagship services all include some sort of discounting and/or value-added extras, whether in terms of performance, assurance, or security.

Digi does not deign to bundle

While Belgian operators tend to position combination packages as flagship offerings, Digi does not deign to bundle. No promotional discounts or other bundling incentives are provided, and the “freedom to choose” an individual service is key to the operator’s launch messaging, as it was in Portugal.

Also as in Portugal, Digi has entered Belgium vowing not to impose automatic price increases, hitting on a shared hot-button issue. Conversely, unlike its Portuguese premiere, there is no mention of a free, no-obligation mobile trial until the end of the year or free Digi-to-Digi calling, and unused monthly mobile data cannot be carried forward. More critically, 5G is currently lacking, with Digi initially restricted to employing the Proximus 4G network on an MVNO basis in order to support cellular mobile services.

How well do you really know your competitors?

Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.

Company Profile – free sample

Thank you!

Your download email will arrive shortly

Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample

We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form

By GlobalData
Visit our Privacy Policy for more information about our services, how we may use, process and share your personal data, including information of your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications. Our services are intended for corporate subscribers and you warrant that the email address submitted is your corporate email address.

The geographic availability of fibre access is also severely curtailed. At launch, Digi’s services comprise symmetrical fibre-based internet access at speeds of up to 500 Mbps, 1 Gbps, and 10 Gbps at a cost of €10, €15, and €20, respectively, offered with a WiFi 6-enabled Digi Internet Box, optional WiFi boosters (€1 per month, up to three), and optional home telephony (€2.50 per month for unlimited calls in Belgium).

Strikingly simplistic

The initial mobile proposition is strikingly simplistic, beginning at a base of €5 per month for ‘unlimited’ calls and SMS (with the caveat that communication will be blocked in excess of 6,000 minutes or texts in a single month, 500 SMS in a day, or SMS being sent to more than 250 different recipients) and 15 GB of data.

Additional data usage is charged at €0.60 per GB (so that 20 GB or 30 GB of data usage will cost €8 or €14 per month, respectively), and users are limited to a maximum of six active lines. TV is not yet on offer, but will support up to 70+ channels, time shifting, three simultaneous streams, and seven-day catch-up, accessible via app or a Digi TV Box.