NCC Approves Six New ISPs Amid Rising Competition from Starlink, Telcos

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has granted licenses to six new Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to commence operations in Nigeria starting January 1, 2026, according to Nairametrics.

This move aims to enhance competition within a telecommunications market that mobile network operators increasingly influence.

The licensing update, reflected in the NCC’s database, indicates a rising number of authorized ISPs, despite challenges such as market consolidation and a downturn in customer numbers.

This new wave of licenses arrives at a critical moment when established ISPs are facing intense competition from major mobile operators like MTN, Airtel, Globacom, and 9mobile, which offer more affordable data plans.

Additionally, the landscape is being further disrupted by innovative services like Elon Musk’s Starlink.

What the data is saying
NCC licensing data shows that the addition of six companies has pushed the total number of licensed Internet Service Providers in Nigeria to 231 from 225 in December 2025.

The data also highlights a strong geographic concentration of ISP operations in a few urban centres, underscoring persistent gaps in broadband distribution across the country.

Five of the newly licensed ISPs are based in Lagos, while only one is located outside the main commercial hubs, operating from Owerri in Imo State.

The new licensees are Intellvision Technologies Limited, Granet Technologies Limited, Fiber Sonic Limited, Dasol Solution Services Ltd, Boost ISP Limited, and Amazon Kuiper Nigeria Limited.

NCC data indicates that most licensed ISPs remain clustered around Lagos, Abuja, and Port Harcourt, reflecting high infrastructure costs and demand concentration in major cities.

The data suggests that while licensing activity continues to grow, market participation remains uneven, with operational strength still heavily tilted toward a handful of regions.

The issuance of new ISP licences comes amid mounting concerns from existing operators over the competitive imbalance between small ISPs and dominant mobile network operators.

Industry players argue that without targeted regulatory safeguards, smaller providers may struggle to survive in a market shaped by scale, capital intensity, and aggressive pricing.

“You can not fight the big player; that is the reality; what we are asking for is a way to work harmoniously, where everyone gets a piece of the pie,” said Chidi Ibisi, Executive Director, Business Development at Broadbased Communications Ltd.

Ibisi warned that dominant operators could crowd smaller ISPs out of the market, not necessarily through unfair practices, but through sheer investment power and nationwide reach.

However, Head of Regulatory and Public Relations, FibreOne, Kehinde Joda, said the ISP sub-sector of the Nigerian telecom market is facing multiple challenges.

According to him, one of the major challenges is that many operators still run traditional models, selling plain Internet access without building clear differentiators or value-added services.

He said innovation is more than just technology but about how “you design your packages, how you manage customers, and how you adapt to changing needs”.

Another key challenge, according to him, is infrastructure cost. He said deploying and maintaining robust networks, especially fibre, is capital-intensive.

Terrestrial vs satellite ISPs
Competition in the ISP market has evolved beyond the long-standing rivalry between fixed broadband providers and mobile network operators.

The entry of satellite-based ISPs with broader coverage and relatively faster deployment has altered consumer preferences and intensified pressure on terrestrial operators.

While Starlink, which came to the market in 2023, had snatched customers from many of the local ISPs to become the second largest ISPs in Nigeria by customer number, the entrance of Amazon Kuiper is set to take the competition a notch higher.

Amazon Kuiper comes in as a direct competitor to Starlink, which has dominated Nigeria’s LEO satellite broadband space since its launch.

The NCC said the licensing of Amazon Kuiper reflects Nigeria’s openness to global satellite broadband providers and responds to rising demand for high-speed internet across underserved and hard-to-reach areas.

Nairametrics previously reported that the Nigerian ISP market is becoming increasingly concentrated around a few dominant players.

Data released by the NCC for the second quarter of 2025 showed that Spectranet, Starlink, and FibreOne accounted for a significant majority of active ISP customers.

The three ISPs controlled about 65% of customers actively connected to ISPs as of Q2 2025.

Out of 125 licensed ISPs at the time, only 133 reported active customer connections, totalling 313,713 users.
Spectranet remained the largest ISP with 99,520 active customers, though its subscriber base declined for the second consecutive quarter.

Starlink closed the gap rapidly, growing its customer base from 59,509 in Q1 2025 to 66,523 in Q2, while FibreOne held third place with 37,117 customers.

With new licences being issued and satellite operators expanding aggressively, competitive pressures in Nigeria’s ISP market are expected to intensify further in the coming years.