Until 2007, incumbent Telecom Vanuatu Limited (TVL) enjoyed an exclusive monopoly on telecommunications. Later that year, the government exited its shareholding in the company, and Digicel entered the market as the first competitive provider. In 2009 pay-tv operator Telsat gained a telecommunications license and began to provide wireless broadband around the main island Efate. 2016 saw the entry of 4G mobile provider Wantok, who began as a data-only provider but have since added voice calling to their product. Wantok have quickly become the second largest provider of Internet in Vanuatu.

In 2014 the Interchange submarine cable connected Vanuatu to Fiji, ending its reliance on satellite for connecting to the Internet. The cable was funded by the government, private companies, and development grants and is operated by the lead funder Interchange Limited. Early pricing on the cable was not far below satellite, and uptake was poor. In 2016 after a long investigation, Vanuatu's telecommunications regulator found the cable company and several other market players had engaged in anti-competitive behaviour, and decided to intervene.

2017 brought the greatest change to Vanuatu in a decade, with Fiji's ATH acquiring TVL from its former owner Telecom Mauritius. The negotiating and purchasing power of ATH could improve TVL's competitiveness and might drive a higher degree of competition in the local market.