For the 6th year in a row, Lithuania retained its leading position in Europe in terms of the fibre-optic (FTTH) Internet network penetration in 2014. According to the global ranking, Lithuania comes in the 8th place, the annual report of the FTTH Council Europe shows, cites LETA/ELTA.

Over the past year, the number of fibre-optic Internet users in Lithuania increased by almost 3 percentage points and reached 34.6%. This is so far the best result among the 39 European countries where a study was conducted in late 2014.

Integrated telecommunication, IT and TV services provider Teo has the most developed fibre-optic Internet network in Lithuania. Last year alone, the company's FTTH Internet customer base increased by more than a tenth and reached over 200,000 households, or almost two-thirds of the country's population. Since 2007, Teo has invested EUR 157 million in the next-generation FTTH access network, the company reports.

Sweden, which is quickly catching up with Lithuania, is in the second place in the European FTTH ranking of the FTTH Council Europe with almost 33% of its population using the fastest Internet access in 2014. Latvia is in the third place with a penetration rate of 29%.

In terms of FTTH penetration in Europe, Estonia is in the 13th place, i.e. 12% of households. With a rate of nearly 70% of FTTH subscribers/homes passed, the United Arab Emirates leads the world in FTTH penetration.