The providers
Any operators
10 operators, 3 physical networks. Here is the map of the Belgian telecom market: who owns what, who resells from whom, and where each brand positions itself.
10 commercial operators for a small number of physical networks.
Mobile: 3 own networks, all national — Proximus, Orange and BASE (Telenet group).
Fixed: Proximus copper/fibre (national), Telenet cable (Flanders), Orange cable, formerly VOO (Wallonia). Access agreements make it possible to offer fixed services everywhere: Orange/hey! via the Telenet cable in Flanders, Telenet/BASE via the Walloon cable (through BASE).
All the other “operators” are brands backed by one of these networks — subsidiaries (Scarlet, Yoin, Mobile Vikings) or MVNOs (hey!…).
Market overview
From the street, the Belgian market looks like a dozen independent options. In reality, it's a game with 3 players and their satellite brands. That structure matters, because it determines who depends on whom : an operator that rents its network can never offer better than what its supplier allows.
These are the 10 operators you will come across in BLOXI Connect, with their real positioning.
The 3 physical networks
Three separate infrastructures coexist in Belgium. The geography of their rollout explains a lot about how the market behaves.
- Proximus network — national VDSL copper + fibre being rolled out, inherited from the former monopoly. Covers all of Belgium.
- Telenet cable — coaxial network deployed in Flanders and Brussels, converted for broadband.
- Orange network — national 4G/5G mobile masts. Since taking over VOO, Orange also owns the Walloon cable (Orange NetCo).
Mobile vs fixed. On the mobile side, the three networks (Proximus, Orange, Telenet/BASE) are national : they cover the whole country. On the fixed side, cable is regional — but access agreements let each group offer internet everywhere: Orange and hey! use the Telenet cable in Flanders, Telenet and BASE reach Wallonia via the former VOO cable (through BASE).
All the other brands buy or rent access to one of these 3 networks. We go into the detail below.
The networks and their brands
Each physical network, with the brands that rely on it.
Main brand. Internet, mobile, TV, landline. Premium positioning, the widest coverage, own shops.
Low-cost subsidiary. Internet and mobile on the Proximus network. Lower prices, fewer features.
Acquired in 2018, digital-first identity kept. Mobile and fixed internet on the Proximus network. Strong awareness among young urban users.
Low-cost mobile-only since 2024. Proximus network, no fixed internet. Entry-price positioning.
The Proximus group controls 4 brands : a segmentation choice (premium / low-cost / digital / mobile-only) to target several audiences without diluting the main brand.
Main brand. National mobile (own network), internet via the Orange NetCo cable in Wallonia and the Telenet cable in Flanders (agreements). Own shops, mainstream positioning.
Former Walloon cable operator, taken over by Orange in 2023. Mobile on the Orange network, internet over the Orange NetCo cable.
Digital-first brand of the Orange group. Mobile on the Orange network; internet on the Orange cable (Wallonia) and Telenet cable (Flanders). No shops, young budget positioning.
You often read that hey! is a Telenet MVNO. That's wrong : hey! belongs to the Orange Belgium group and uses the Orange mobile network. The confusion probably comes from fixed services — like Orange, hey! relies on the Telenet cable for internet in Flanders and Brussels.
Main brand. National mobile, internet on its own cable (Flanders/BXL) and in Wallonia via agreements. TV, own shops, premium positioning.
Own national mobile network (3rd Belgian MNO). Fixed internet: Telenet cable in Flanders, Orange cable (formerly VOO) in Wallonia.
What about DIGI?
Joint venture between Citymesh (Belgium) and the DIGI Communications group (Romania). Building its own 4G/5G mobile network since 2024. Limited coverage, expanding. Fixed internet restricted to a few municipalities for now.
DIGI is the 4th mobile network under construction. Eventually a 4th independent infrastructure — for now, partial coverage and a more limited range than the 3 established networks.
When fixed and mobile differ
An important subtlety: an operator can use one network for mobile and another for fixed internet. This is very common in Belgium, and it creates situations you need to understand.
BASE — own mobile network, fixed via third parties. BASE is a fully fledged mobile MNO (Telenet group) on its own national mobile network. For fixed services, it relies on third-party infrastructure: Orange cable (formerly VOO) in Wallonia, Telenet cable in Flanders. Result: fixed-line quality and the after-sales chain vary by region.
Mobile Vikings — digital-first on Proximus infrastructure. Mobile and fixed internet on the Proximus network, technical quality on a par with the parent brand, but a very different customer experience (app, support, philosophy).
Scarlet — low-cost on a premium network. Same infrastructure as Proximus (copper, fibre, masts): the technology is identical. What changes: lower prices, fewer options, minimal support, customers potentially deprioritised during congestion.
For mobile coverage at your address, look at the network used, not the brand: a Mobile Vikings customer gets Proximus coverage. That's what shows up in the Coverage score — see the guide Coverage.
How to choose among all this
For the widest coverage — the 3 main MNOs (Proximus, Orange, Telenet) have the best scores: they invest in their own networks. On mobile, Proximus and Orange cover the whole country; for fibre, Proximus is ahead.
For the best price — the low-cost brands (Scarlet on the Proximus network, Mobile Vikings, hey! on Orange) are consistently cheaper than the parent brand. The trade-off: fewer options, fewer shops, less available support.
For a smooth digital experience — the digital brands (Mobile Vikings, hey!, Yoin) are designed for 100% online use: no shops, efficient app, simple journey.
To support the local economy — the Spirit criterion measures exactly that (Belgian jobs, governance, physical presence, network investment). Proximus, Telenet and Orange dominate; their satellite brands follow in a middle position.
Rather than comparing 10 operators by hand, launch the diagnosis : it cross-references your criteria with the operators available at your address and offers you a personalised ranking.
The other operators
Beyond the 10 listed here, the Belgian market has a handful of niche players.
On the fixed side, independent resellers rent access to the Proximus network through the regulated wholesale offer (« bitstream ») — for example Edpnet or Dommel. They mainly offer internet, sometimes on aggressive terms, but with a narrow range and no network of their own.
On the mobile side, a few MVNOs target specific uses (prepaid, international calls, communities), relying on one of the three national networks.
BLOXI Connect doesn't include them as long as their range is too limited to be compared fairly on the 5 criteria, or where there's no partnership. Where that's the case, it's stated explicitly rather than hiding that they exist — the rule applies across the whole market.
These players remain marginal in market share. For the vast majority of Belgian households, the right choice is among the 10 operators covered — that is what the ranking checks at your address.