Iceland is among the top countries in the world in terms of Internet deployment and use. 99.68% of Icelanders used in the internet in 2021.[1]
As of December 2023, Iceland is listed 6th in the world for fixed access download speeds according to Speedtest.net at 249.32 Mbit/s.[2] Today, 90% citizens are connected to full-fibre (FTTH) networks,[3] with at least 1 Gbit/s speeds available to all and 10 Gbit/s available to most.[4] Iceland has 168.2 Tbit/s of submarine bandwidth capacity through 4 cables. 97% of Icelanders used an electronic ID in 2022 to identify themselves online.[5]
Míla (formerly part of Síminn, former incumbent) operates the largest national trunk network, copper and GPON (FTTH) fibre access network. Ljósleiðarinn, originally a fully municipal owned network, operates a competing national trunk and bitsteam accessPTP fibre network. Smaller local ISPs operate locally. Neyðarlínan (112), is the current government-owned universal service provider. Síminn, Vodafone, NOVA and Hringdu are the Iargest ISPs in Iceland.
Full-fibre is the most common connection medium (FTTH/FTTB, through both PTP and GPON). Some rural towns are still reliant on VDSL connections. A minority of rural connections are by provided by ADSL and fixed wireless in the most remote of locations.
17.2% of connections are between 100 and 500 Mbit/s and above.
14.3% of connections are between 10 and 100 Mbit/s.
Less than 0.1% of connections are below 10 Mbit/s.[6]
Over 90% of homes in Iceland have full fibre access,[8] However the uptake of fibre services is only 82%. Míla offers a XG-PON/GPON network with a minimum flat rate delivered at 1 Gbit/s, and additional access tiers of 2.5, 5 and 10 Gbit/s. Ljósleiðarinn's network is based on a PTP wholesale interconnect model, with a minimum flat rate delivered at 1 Gbit/s and an additional charge for 10 Gbit/s service.[9] Ljósleiðarinn's full fibre network extends to 100% of the Reykjavík capital area as of 2016.[3] Míla operates full-fibre access networks in most urban areas of Iceland but does not have as complete coverage of the Reykjavík area. Ljósleiðarinn also has 100% fibre coverage in smaller towns such as Reykjanesbær,[4]Akranes, Þorlákshöfn, Hella, Selfoss and Hvolsvöllur.[10]
There are other smaller fibre networks run by local municipalities and companies, a major one being Tengir in the north east of Iceland providing a fibre network to Akureyri and surrounding regions offering up to >1Gbit/s speeds.
Rural Access
The government has engaged in a programme called Ísland Ljóstengt running from 2016 to 2022. It funds FTTH deployment to 5,500 rural locations allowing this goal to be reached.[11] As of 2022, around 2,000 locations remain that only have ADSL service (lower than 10Mbit/s speed),[7] accounting for 1.5% of connections. The Government of Iceland's goal is for 99% of homes and businesses to have access to at least 100Mbit/s speeds by the year 2022.[12]
As of 2022 there are also 64,000 active data-only4G/5G subscriptions, mainly used for second homes and Mi-Fi devices, as well as serving as an alternative to fixed-line DSL/fibre services.[6]
Internet Service Providers
Internet service in Iceland is divided between the international providers, national ISP and access network providers.
Others ISPs constitute 2.4% of the market (Hrigiðan, Snerpa, Origo etc.).
Access Operators
The following operators offer access networks. Míla operates a national fibre and copper access network (incumbent). The others operate full fibre networks. Ljósleiðarinn is the second largest network, covering most towns in the southwest of the country. Other networks cover regional areas and municipal networks.
As of 2023, Míla and Neyðarlínan are the current universal service providers, but this is due to change in 2024.[14]
International/Submarine connectivity
Iceland is currently connected with 5 submarine communications cable system to Europe and North America:[15][16] Iceland has access total capacity of 168.2 Tbit/s capacity as of 2023. According to Farice ehf., as of 2021, a total of 1.5 Tbit/s of capacity is currently being utilised for international bandwidth in Iceland.[17]
Out of regular service, used to connect oil platforms.
Most of Iceland's growth in international bandwidth is due to data center investment in the country, the domestic internet market is fairly saturated.
Iceland's first fiber submarine cable providing packet switching, CANTAT-3, had an original capacity of 2 x 2.5 Gbit/s to Denmark, Germany, the Faroe Islands and Canada. It was notoriously unreliable, with an average of one cable cut per year. Satellite was the only backup at the time, until FARICE was built in 2003. CANTAT-3 became obsolete in 2010 with the introduction on DANICE and is now out of normal use for internet traffic in Iceland. CANTAT-3 is now operated by Føroya Tele for connecting oil platforms in the North Sea.
The main provider of international capacity to Europe is Farice ehf. with Tusass providing direct services to Greenland and North America.
The submarine cable capacities have been repeatedly upgraded over time as the demands of increased bandwidth use in Iceland, as end equipment technology has improved. Previously DANICE and FARICE operated with 300 Gbit/s links and Greenland Connect with a 20 Gbit/s link but were upgraded in 2014 to their current design capacity using coherent 100G wavelength and flex grid technology.
The IRIS cable system became ready for service on the 1 March 2023, extending from Þorlákshöfn, Iceland to Galway, Ireland. IRIS more than doubles Iceland's current subsea capacity and gives Iceland a latency of 10 ms to Ireland as well as connecting more directly with transatlantic capacity to the U.S.[19]
As Iceland is geographically situated in the mid-atlantic, it has shorter ping times to locations to Europe than North America. Here are a few examples of nominal ping times from Iceland:[20]
Map of fibre routes in Iceland (2021), excluding NATO fibre ring.
Iceland's domestic internet backbone is composed of many fibre routes, with microwave links serving the most isolated communities. Iceland's backbone is operated by two companies; Míla hf and Ljósleiðarinn. Other companies also operate their own backbone networks, such as Orkufjarskipti (owned by electricity utilities Landsvirkjun and Landsnet).
The most historically critical part of Iceland's internet infrastructure is a fibre ring that circles the country, roughly following the route of Iceland's ring road (Route 1), passing through most towns and cities. It is still an important part of Iceland's internet backbone, but has been duplicated on most routes by private companies. It was constructed in 1989-1991 by the Icelandic Government and NATO to link radar stations of the Iceland Air Defence System. It consists of 8 fibres, 1 of which are for use by NATO, 5 by Míla hf and 2 leased to Ljósleiðarinn.
National Educational and Research Network
Universities and research institutions are connected by RHnet, Iceland's national education and research network (NERN). It is connected to the wider Nordic educational network, NORDUnet and European educational network, GÉANT. The origins of Iceland's internet stem from this network through Hafrannsóknastofnun and in turn the University of Iceland, first being connected in 1986.[21]
98.2% of households having broadband Internet access in 2016 (1st out of 34)[23]
99.5% of businesses using the Internet in 2009-2010 (2nd out of 31)
The Global Information Technology Report 2010–2011[24] by the World Economic Forum ranked Iceland:
1st out of 138 in terms of Internet users (93.5% of the population used the Internet in 2009)
1st out of 138 in the use of virtual social networks (a score of 6.8 in 2009–2010, where 1 is not at all and 7 is widely)
1st out of 138 in terms of Internet access in schools (a score of 6.76 in 2009–2010, where 1 is very limited and 7 is extensive)
1st out of 138 in accessibility of digital content (a score of 6.62 in 2009–2010, where 1 is not accessible at all and 7 is widely accessible)
1st out of 137 in the number of secure Internet servers (1,711.3 servers per million population in 2009)
4th out of 138 in the extent of business Internet use (a score of 6.58 in 2009–2010, where 1 is not at all and 7 is extensively)
5th out of 138 in terms of international Internet bandwidth (626.8 Mbit/s per 10,000 population in 2009)
12th out of 138 in terms of laws related to information and communication technology (a score of 5.46 in 2009–2010, where 1 is nonexistent and 7 is well developed)
25th out of 138 in terms of intellectual property protection (a score of 5.09 in 2009–2010, where 1 is very weak and 7 is very strong)
35th out of 107 in the use of unlicensed software (an estimated 49% of software was unlicensed in 2009)
45th out of 138 in terms of freedom of the press (a score of 5.76 in 2009–2010, where 1 is totally restricted and 7 is completely free)
History
Iceland's first connection to the internet was in 1986 through Hafrannsóknastofnun to Amsterdam, eventually expanding to the University of Iceland and eventually becoming ISnet (now Internet á Íslandi hf)., which in turn became ISNIC, the manager of the ".is" domain. The development of Iceland's internet per ISnet, are listed in the table below:[21][25]
In 1986 Iceland obtained a UUCP connection between the Marine Research Institute in Iceland to EUnet (European Unix Network) headquarters in Amsterdam. The connection provided e-mail and Usenet services. Bandwidth was somewhere between 300 and 1200 bits per second (bit/s).
In 1989 a connection to the Internet was established using IP over X.25 with NORDUnet in Denmark at 2400 bit/s.
In 1990 a leased line connection to NORDUnet in Stockholm operating at 9600 bit/s was established. This link was upgraded to operate at 56,000 bit/s in 1992, 128,000 bit/s in 1994, 256,000 bit/s and then 1,000,000 bit/s in 1995, and 1,984,000 in 1996.
In 1991 the NATO fibre ring was completed, serving as an important part of Iceland's domestic telecom/internet backbone.
In 1994 the first commercial Internet services, Midheimar ehf, opened with SLIP/PPP access giving people access to the web for the first time from their homes.
In March 1997 ISnet (a collective term for the Icelandic segments of NORDUnet and EUnet) established a direct connection to Teleglobe in Montreal, Canada at 9600 bit/s. to supplement the European connection. This line was moved to New York City and upgraded to 48,178,001 bit/s in September 1999.
1999 marked the first year ADSL services were available in Iceland.
Broadband internet access gained rapid popularity in Iceland due to the early use of IPTV technologies in the early 2000s. Cable and Satellite TV services are next to nonexistent and therefore the provision of TV through DSL or fibre was in high demand.
In January 2004 the submarine communications fibre cable systemFARICE-1 was put into commercial operation with a design capacity of 720 Gbit/s and lit capacity of 20 Gbit/s (and in August 2013 upgraded to a design capacity of 11 Tbit/s and a lit capacity of 200 Gbit/s).[26]
2004 FTTH trials began of Orkuveita Reykjavíkur building a fibre optic network, operating through a subsidiary called Gagnveita Reykjavíkur (GR) with a 100Mbit/s connection.
In 2008, xDSL use peaked in Iceland with 98% of connections.
In September 2009 the submarine communications fibre cable DANICE was put into commercial operation with an original design capacity of 5120 Gbit/s (and later upgraded to a design capacity of at least 16 Terabit/s and a lit capacity of 200 Gbit/s). Additionally Greenland Connect as third cable was installed at the same time.[26]
From 2009, VDSL services became active from Míla in Reykjavík and larger towns offering 50-100 Mbit/s services.
In October 2016, Ljósleiðarinn (Gagnveita Reykjavíkur) upgraded its network from 100 Mbit to 1 Gbit/s symmetric connections to all customers.
In 2018, full fibre connections surpassed xDSL use for the first time.[13]
2018 marked the year that 100% of homes in the Reykjavík area had FTTH access.[4]
Síminn, the incumbent telecommunications provider in Iceland, began to offer services over Ljósleiðarinn's wholesale fibre network in 2021, after a long dispute over fibre access.[28]
In 2022, Síminn completed the sale of its wholesale access and backbone network, Míla, to Ardian.
In 2022, to increase competition in the telecom industry, one of the NATO ring pairs was leased out by competitive tender to Ljósleiðarinn.[29]
In 2022, Ljósleiðarinn took over Vodafone Iceland's national backbone including their one pair on the NATO fibre ring, giving them two pairs to utilise on the national ring. They plan to lay their own circular route around Iceland in the years 2022–2025.[30] This means Vodafone Iceland no longer operates its own backbone.
In February 2023, SpaceX's Starlink became available in Iceland.[31]
In March 2023, the IRIS submarine cable system was ready for service, more than doubling Iceland's international bandwidth capacity with a new route to Ireland.
In October 2023, both major access network operators, Míla and Ljósleiðarinn, began to offer 2.5, 5 and 10 Gbit/s residential connections.[9]
Censorship
Censorship is prohibited by the Icelandic Constitution and there is a strong tradition of protecting freedom of expression that extends to the use of the Internet.[32] This is mirrored by Iceland being rated the most free of the 70 countries in Freedom House'sFreedom On the Net 2022 Reportat all.[33]
However, questions about how best to protect children, fight terrorism, prevent libel, and protect the rights of copyright holders are ongoing in Iceland as they are in much of the world.
The five Nordic countries—Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, and Iceland—are central players in the European battle between file sharers, rights holders, and Internet service providers (ISPs). While each country determines its own destiny, the presence of the European Union (EU) is felt in all legal controversies and court cases. Iceland, while not a member of the EU, is part of the European Economic Area (EEA) and has agreed to enact legislation similar to that passed in the EU in areas such as consumer protection and business law.[34]
Internet service providers in Iceland use filters to block Web sites distributing child pornography. Iceland's ISPs in cooperation with Barnaheill—Save the Children Iceland participate in the International Association of Internet Hotlines (INHOPE) project. Suspicious links are reported by organizations and the general public and passed on to relevant authorities for verification.
In 2012 and 2013 Ögmundur Jónasson, Minister of Interior, proposed two bills to the Icelandic parliament that would limit Icelander's access to the Internet. The first proposed limitations on gambling[35] and the second on pornography.[36][37] Neither bill was passed by the Icelandic parliament and a new government has since been formed following the parliamentary election held on 27 April 2013.[38]
History
On 10 June 2009 the two major ISPs in Iceland, Vodafone Iceland and Iceland Telecom at the behest of SAFT (Save the Children Iceland) and other interest groups instated a null route on the website ringulreid.org, making it inaccessible to most commercial Internet users in Iceland.[39][40] Other members of the Reykjavik Internet Exchange did not institute the null route, but both Vodafone and Síminn blocked it at their Icelandic routers.
The ringulreid.org domain subsequently expired[41] and the site was taken down by its operator. But a similar site slembingur.org sprang up to replace it.
Both Vodafone Iceland[42] and Síminn[43] updated their blocks to null route 83.99.152.251, the IP address slembingur.org resolves to.
ringulreid.org was a 4chan-like image board in the Icelandic language which had been making the news for cyber-bullying, child porn and similar material.[44] The administrators of the site had rejected these accusations, citing their strict policies of banning users who posted child pornography.[45]ringulreid.org had been set up after a similar site, handahof.org, had been voluntarily closed down by its operator on request of the Iceland Capital Police following their investigation into the matter.[46]
The block against ringulreid.org was instated at the behest of the National Police of Iceland, Iceland Capital Police, the Child Protection Authority of Iceland (part of the Iceland Ministry of Social Affairs), Save the Children Iceland (SAFT) (a private organization) and various other private and government groups, which made public statements encouraging all internet service providers in the country to block access to the site.[47]
Thus the censorship in Iceland is not explicitly government mandated, but implemented voluntarily by private corporations in response to pressure from government and private institutions. Vodafone conducted a legal review to investigate whether it was within its rights to restrict access to the website, and after finding that they were within their rights instituted the block.
In a statement two days after the initial block Hrannar Pétursson, the press secretary for Vodafone, indicated that it was not on Vodafone's agenda to implement a more general censoring mechanism, but as ringulreid.org was an "exaggerated example of such a case" Vodafone considered the act justifiable.[48] His colleague Margrét Stefánsdóttir at Síminn echoed those remarks, saying that Síminn would never close a page on its own initiative, but when faced with such serious requests they were compelled to act.[48]
Since slembingur.org is hosted on a shared web hosting service, and the block takes the form of a null route any other sites that happen to share the same IP address are also blocked. As of 30 September 2010 these were the private E-Mail gateway ns1.bighost.lv, the cosmetics manufacturer saulesfabrika.com, the construction company timbersolution.com, the printing house veiters.com and the boilerplate site ventus.lv.[49] As of 8 February 2011, slembingur.org had changed IP addresses and is therefore no longer blocked by Vodafone. The null route is still in place, so collateral damage is the only result from this incident.
Internet portal
