Communications :: ALBANIA

Telephones - fixed lines: total subscriptions: 250,000 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 8 (2014 est.) country comparison to the world: 123 Telephones - mobile cellular: total: 3.4 million subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 111 (2014 est.) country comparison to the world: 133 Telephone system: general assessment: despite new investment in fixed lines, teledensity remains low with roughly 10 fixed lines per 100 people; mobile-cellular telephone use is widespread and generally effective domestic: offsetting the shortage of fixed-line capacity, mobile-cellular phone service has been available since 1996; by 2011, multiple companies were providing mobile services, and mobile teledensity had reached 100 per 100 persons; Internet broadband services initiated in 2005, but growth has been slow; Internet cafes are popular in Tirana and have started to spread outside the capital international: country code - 355; submarine cable provides connectivity to Italy, Croatia, and Greece; the Trans-Balkan Line, a combination submarine cable and land fiber-optic system, provides additional connectivity to Bulgaria, Macedonia, and Turkey; international traffic carried by fiber-optic cable and, when necessary, by microwave radio relay from the Tirana exchange to Italy and Greece (2011) Broadcast media: 3 public TV networks, one of which transmits by satellite to Albanian-language communities in neighboring countries; more than 60 private TV stations; many viewers can pick up Italian and Greek TV broadcasts via terrestrial reception; cable TV service is available; 2 public radio networks and roughly 25 private radio stations; several international broadcasters are available (2010) Radio broadcast stations: AM 13, FM 46, shortwave 1 (2005) Television broadcast stations: 65 (3 national, 62 local); 2 cable networks (2005) Internet country code: .al Internet hosts: 15,528 (2012) country comparison to the world: 124 Internet users: total: 1.7 million percent of population: 56.5% (2014 est.) country comparison to the world: 104