ARCEP

What ARCEP does

ARCEP is France's independent administrative authority (autorité administrative indépendante) charged with regulating electronic communications, postal services, and press distribution. Established in 1997 as the Autorité de Régulation des Télécommunications (ART), it was renamed ARCEP in 2005 when postal oversight was added, and its mandate was further extended in 2021 to cover the distribution of the press. The authority reports to the French Parliament but operates independently from the operators it regulates, exercising statutory powers that no private entity possesses.

ARCEP's operational platform combines regulatory technology tools for market monitoring and enforcement with public-facing data services. Core consumer tools include "J'alerte l'Arcep" (a complaint intake channel), "Mon réseau mobile" (mobile coverage comparison across operators), and "Ma connexion internet" (fibre eligibility checks). It operates continuous observatories on 4G/5G/fibre deployment quality, publishes the annual "Baromètre du Numérique" survey, and runs an open data portal exposing market indicators. The regulator manages spectrum allocation, fixed and mobile market authorisations, and inter-operator dispute resolution, and it co-operates with the French Competition Authority (Autorité de la concurrence) and Arcom on the joint Digital Pole.

ARCEP is not a commercial entity and generates no product revenue. It is funded via fees and taxes levied on the operators it regulates — Orange, SFR, Bouygues Telecom, and Free Mobile — as well as through the IFER tax ceiling applied to copper-network operators. Its "customers" are effectively three constituencies: end consumers (dispute resolution and information), telecom and postal operators (compliance, spectrum, authorisations), and public authorities (infrastructure planning, including Very High Speed plans). Newer scope areas include cloud-services switching guidelines, environmental monitoring of digital infrastructure with ADEME, and satellite data assessment with AGEOS.

Name

ARCEP

Legal name

Autorité de régulation des communications électroniques, des postes et de la distribution de la presse

Website

https://arcep.fr

Company type

Private

Founded year

1997

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

ARCEP is France's independent regulatory authority for electronic communications, postal services, and press distribution, overseeing operators (Orange, SFR, Bouygues Telecom, Free Mobile), serving consumers with monitoring tools, and advising the French government on spectrum, infrastructure, and digital policy.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

ARCEP is the French independent administrative authority that regulates electronic communications, postal services and press distribution. It enforces non-discriminatory network access, allocates radio spectrum, oversees the copper-to-fibre transition, monitors operator service quality, and protects consumer interests. It delivers public-facing digital tools (complaint platform, coverage comparison, fibre eligibility lookup) and publishes market observatories and statistical indicators.

Product overview

ARCEP is a French regulatory authority for electronic communications, posts, and press distribution. Rather than offering commercial products, ARCEP provides regulatory monitoring tools and public data services including consumer complaint platforms (J'alerte l'Arcep), network quality comparison tools (Mon réseau mobile, Ma connexion internet), public data observatories tracking 5G/4G/fibre deployments, and the annual Baromètre du Numérique survey on French digital practices. These tools serve consumers, operators, and local authorities in monitoring and improving telecommunications infrastructure quality and accessibility.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• J'alerte l'Arcep Consumer complaint platform enabling citizens to report problems with their internet access, mobile coverage, postal parcel distribution, and press distribution services to the French regulator.
• Mon réseau mobile Interactive tool allowing users to compare mobile network coverage and quality of service across the four major French operators (Orange, SFR, Bouygues Telecom, Free Mobile) based on official regulator measurements.
• Ma connexion internet Online portal enabling users to check fibre optic and broadband eligibility at any address in France, discover available operators, technologies, and connection speeds.
• Observatoire des déploiements 5G Regulatory monitoring dashboard tracking 5G network deployments across France with quarterly published statistics on coverage and operator progress.
• Baromètre du Numérique Annual survey measuring French digital practices, published in collaboration with ADEME, covering equipment, usage, and environmental impact of digital technologies.
• Open Data Portal Open data platform providing public access to telecommunications market indicators, network coverage maps, deployment statistics, and regulatory observatories.
• Indicateurs d'accessibilité Quarterly published indicators measuring accessibility of telecommunications services for deaf, hard-of-hearing, deafblind, and aphasic users.

Quantifiable outcome

• France achieved top European fixed internet speeds with median download speeds of 352.35 Mbit/s and upload speeds of 273.45 Mbit/s (Ookla Speedtest Global Index, March 2026)
• +3 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• ARCEP BeninminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 February 2026ARCEP Benin hosted the Africa session of the second iPRIS Francophone cohort in Cotonou, bringing together telecom regulators from Benin, Burundi, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and Guinea for peer-to-peer learning focused on digital transformation and regulatory reform. The four-day session marked a shift from training to action, with regulators testing Change Initiatives. ARCEP Benin announced new tariff regulation decisions and a framework for free WiFi zones.
• AGEOScoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 February 2026ARCEP and AGEOS signed a Memorandum of Understanding to formalize cooperation on using satellite data for monitoring radio installations in the telecommunications sector. The partnership aims to enhance regulatory efficiency and accuracy through data-driven insights and improved digital infrastructure planning. The two institutions collaborate through joint projects, training initiatives, and a dedicated steering committee to modernize regulatory practices.
• AzercosmoscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 January 2026Azercosmos (the space agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan) and Chad's ARCEP signed a Memorandum of Understanding to cooperate in digital transformation, satellite services, and space activities. The agreement covers spectrum management, satellite communications, Earth observation, telecommunications, and business opportunities in video broadcasting and data services. Includes educational initiatives such as training programs through Azercosmos' SPACE Academy, summer schools, and satellite programs for schools in Chad.
• BEREC (Body of European Regulators of Electronic Communications)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerARCEP is a member of BEREC, the European Union Agency for the Recovery of End-user Communications. BEREC promotes the consistent application of the EU regulatory framework for electronic communications networks and services across EU member states.
• FratelminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerARCEP is a member of Fratel, a network of francophone telecom regulators that facilitates cooperation and knowledge sharing among French-speaking regulatory authorities.
• ADEME (Agence de la transition écologique)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerARCEP operates the Environmental Impacts Observatory for Digital Technology in partnership with ADEME, conducting studies on the environmental footprint of digital infrastructure including AI's carbon emissions projections and annual surveys on digital sustainability.
• Arcom (Autorité de régulation de la communication audiovisuelle et numérique)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerARCEP and Arcom operate a joint Digital Pole to address digital topics requiring cross-sector expertise, including terminal openness, online content, minor protection from pornographic content, and shared studies and working groups.
• FCA (French Competition Authority)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerARCEP and FCA are jointly developing a dual-track regulatory framework for cloud markets, combining competition law enforcement with sector-specific regulation. The FCA initiated a cloud sector inquiry in 2023, and France enacted the SREN Law in May 2024. Both authorities are coordinating on cloud market oversight.

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• AGCOM: Italian regulator for electronic communications, audiovisual media, and publishing. Most directly comparable in mandate mix (telecom + postal-adjacent publishing) and BEREC participation.
• Bundesnetzagentur (BNetzA): Germany's federal regulatory agency for electricity, gas, telecommunications, post, and rail. Comparable multi-sector mandate and enforcement powers to ARCEP, with similar BEREC membership.
• Ofcom: UK regulator for communications services (broadcasting, telecoms, postal) with similar statutory powers and consumer-protection tools. Direct equivalent to ARCEP in scope and operating model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/arcep
• YouTubedailymotion.com/ARCEP
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/arcep
• Instagraminstagram.com/arcep_france
• Facebookfacebook.com/158571241654

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about ARCEP