Telecommunication in Europe
The statistics provided on this page have been created with the most current information available as of July 2004. Click on the following links for Chart 2 and assessments of the telecommunications infrastructure for the selected countries. Refer to the bibliography page for a complete list of references, years used for the recorded statistics and an explanation of the symbols used to distinguish category sources.
Chart 1: |
Personal Computers+ |
Internet Users** | Internet Hosts** | Internet Service Providers# | ISDN Subscribers** |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Czech Republic |
1,500,000 |
1,827000 |
228,625 |
>300 |
121,207 |
France |
20,000,000 |
17,493,000 |
1,064,216 |
62 |
3,744,035 |
Germany |
35,921,000 |
49,616,000 |
3,225,973 |
200 |
11,638,178 |
Italy |
11,300,000 |
20,512,000 |
757,874 |
93 |
2,881,545 |
Netherlands |
6,900,000 |
9,210,000 |
3,019,688 |
52 |
771,428 |
Norway |
2,300,000 |
2,910,000 |
310,759 |
13 |
925,733 |
Poland |
3,300,000 |
4,999,000 |
525,351 |
19 |
116,460 |
Russia |
7,300,000 |
6,145,000 |
420,684 |
35 |
N/A |
Spain |
6,800,000 |
11,205,000 |
583,222 |
56 |
1,093,399 |
Sweden |
5,000,000 |
4,936,000 |
744,835 |
29 |
340,396 |
Switzerland |
3,900,000 |
2,857,000 |
547,397 |
44 |
1,094,832 |
United Kingdom |
22,000,000 |
25,452,000 |
2,508,936 |
245 |
971,302 |
Chart 2: |
Telephone Lines in Use** |
Mobile Telephone |
Television Receivers+ | Capital Investment in Telecommunications $US Millions** |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Czech Republic |
4,483,000 |
7,946,700 |
3,288,700 |
2,334.8 |
France |
34,745,000 |
41,358,800 |
37,000,000 |
6,705.4 |
Germany |
52,960,000 |
62,704,500 |
48,170,000 |
6,488.9 |
Italy |
27,844,000 |
51,720,100 |
28,300,000 |
13,794.9 |
Netherlands |
10,327,000 |
13,386,600 |
8,600,000 |
2,995.1 |
Norway |
3,263,000 |
3,787,800 |
3,000,000 |
3,750.0 |
Poland |
12,992,000 |
19,029,200 |
15,500,000 |
1,513.6 |
Russia |
36,090,000 |
14,596,900 |
79,000,000 |
681.1 |
Spain |
17,861,000 |
29,856,200 |
24,000,000 |
N/A |
Sweden |
6,598,000 |
7,132,700 |
5,100,000 |
2,496.1 |
Switzerland |
5,396,000 |
5,515,800 |
3,950,000 |
5,576.1 |
United Kingdom |
36,480,000 |
48,092,400 |
39,000,000 |
17,363.8 |
CIA Analysis of Telecommunications Infrastructure:
Source: CIA World Factbook
Czech Republic:
General Assessment: privatization and modernization of the Czech telecommunication system got a late start but is advancing steadily; growth in the use of mobile cellular telephones is particularly vigorous.
Domestic: 86% of exchanges now digital; existing copper subscriber systems now being enhanced with Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) equipment to accommodate Internet and other digital signals; trunk systems include fiber-optic cable and microwave radio relay.
International: country code - 420; satellite earth stations - 2 Intersputnik (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions), 1 Intelsat, 1 Eutelsat, 1 Inmarsat, 1 Globalstar.
Internet Country Code: .czFrance:
General Assessment: highly developed.
Domestic: extensive cable and microwave radio relay; extensive introduction of fiber-optic cable; domestic satellite system.
International: country code - 33; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (with total of 5 antennas - 2 for Indian Ocean and 3 for Atlantic Ocean), NA Eutelsat, 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region); HF radiotelephone communications with more than 20 countries.
Internet Country Code: .frGermany:
General Assessment: Germany has one of the world's most technologically advanced telecommunications systems; as a result of intensive capital expenditures since reunification, the formerly backward system of the eastern part of the country, dating back to World War II, has been modernized and integrated with that of the western part.
Domestic: Germany is served by an extensive system of automatic telephone exchanges connected by modern networks of fiber-optic cable, coaxial cable, microwave radio relay, and a domestic satellite system; cellular telephone service is widely available, expanding rapidly, and includes roaming service to many foreign countries.
International: country code - 49; Germany's international service is excellent worldwide, consisting of extensive land and undersea cable facilities as well as earth stations in the INMARSAT, INTELSAT, EUTELSAT, and INTERSPUTNIK satellite systems (2001).
Internet Country Code: .deItaly:
General Assessment: modern, well developed, fast; fully automated telephone, telex, and data services.
Domestic: high-capacity cable and microwave radio relay trunks.
International: country code - 39; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (with a total of 5 antennas - 3 for Atlantic Ocean and 2 for Indian Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region), and NA Eutelsat; 21 submarine cables.
Internet Country Code: .it
Netherlands:
General Assessment: highly developed and well maintained.
Domestic: extensive fixed-line fiber-optic network; cellular telephone system is one of the largest in Europe with five major network operators utilizing the third generation of the Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM).
International: country code - 31; 9 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 2 Atlantic Ocean), 1 Eutelsat, and 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions) (2004).
Internet Country Code: .nlNorway:
General Assessment: modern in all respects; one of the most advanced telecommunications networks in Europe.
Domestic: Norway has a domestic satellite system; moreover, the prevalence of rural areas encourages the wide use of cellular mobile systems instead of fixed-wire systems.
International: country code - 47; 2 buried coaxial cable systems; 4 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth stations - NA Eutelsat, NA Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean), and 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions); note - Norway shares the Inmarsat earth station with the other Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, and Sweden) (1999).
Internet Country Code: .noPoland:
General Assessment: underdeveloped and outmoded system in the process of being overhauled; partial privatization of the state-owned telephone monopoly is underway; the long waiting list for main line telephone service has resulted in a boom in mobile cellular telephone use.
Domestic: cable, open-wire, and microwave radio relay; 3 cellular networks; local exchanges 56.6% digital.
International: country code - 48; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat, NA Eutelsat, 2 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions), and 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region).
Internet Country Code: .plRussia:
General Assessment: the telephone system underwent significant changes in the 1990s; there are more than 1,000 companies licensed to offer communication services; access to digital lines has improved, particularly in urban centers; Internet and e-mail services are improving; Russia has made progress toward building the telecommunications infrastructure necessary for a market economy; however, a large demand for main line service remains unsatisfied.
Domestic: cross-country digital trunk lines run from Saint Petersburg to Khabarovsk, and from Moscow to Novorossiysk; the telephone systems in 60 regional capitals have modern digital infrastructures; cellular services, both analog and digital, are available in many areas; in rural areas, the telephone services are still outdated, inadequate, and low density.
International: country code - 7; Russia is connected internationally by three undersea fiber-optic cables; digital switches in several cities provide more than 50,000 lines for international calls; satellite earth stations provide access to Intelsat, Intersputnik, Eutelsat, Inmarsat, and Orbita systems.
Internet Country Code: .ru; Russia also has responsibility for a legacy domain ".su" that was allocated to the Soviet Union, and whose legal status and ownership are contested by the Russian Government, ICANN, and several Russian commercial entities.Spain:
General Assessment: generally adequate, modern facilities; teledensity is 44 main lines for each 100 persons.
Domestic: NA
International: country code - 34; 22 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), NA Eutelsat; tropospheric scatter to adjacent countries.
Internet Country Code: .esSweden:
General Assessment: excellent domestic and international facilities; automatic system.
Domestic: coaxial and multiconductor cables carry most of the voice traffic; parallel microwave radio relay systems carry some additional telephone channels.
International: country code - 46; 5 submarine coaxial cables; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean), 1 Eutelsat, and 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions); note - Sweden shares the Inmarsat earth station with the other Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, and Norway).
Internet Country Code: .seSwitzerland:
General Assessment: excellent domestic and international services.
Domestic: extensive cable and microwave radio relay networks.
International: country code - 41; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean and Indian Ocean).
Internet Country Code: .chUnited Kingdom:
General Assessment: technologically advanced domestic and international system.
Domestic: equal mix of buried cables, microwave radio relay, and fiber-optic systems.
International: country code - 44; 40 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 10 Intelsat (7 Atlantic Ocean and 3 Indian Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region), and 1 Eutelsat; at least 8 large international switching centers.
Internet Country Code: .uk
Content: Greg Russell
gwruss@lamar.colostate.edu
Supervisor: Naomi Lederer