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Qatar vs. Saudi Arabia

Telecommunications

QatarSaudi Arabia
Telephones - main lines in usetotal subscriptions: 461,289

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 19.15 (2019 est.)
total subscriptions: 5,377,978

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 15.97 (2019 est.)
Telephones - mobile cellulartotal subscriptions: 3,917,571

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 162.6 (2019 est.)
total subscriptions: 41,298,629

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 122.66 (2019 est.)
Internet country code.qa.sa
Internet userstotal: 2,355,297

percent of population: 99.65% (July 2018 est.)
total: 30,877,318

percent of population: 93.31% (July 2018 est.)
Telecommunication systemsgeneral assessment:

telecom infrastructure in Qatar demonstrated resilience during the pandemic, following surge in Internet usage; highest fixed-line and mobile penetrations in Middle East with almost 100% LTE coverage; operator deployed 5G across the country with positive subscribership, primarily around Doha; largest user of the Internet in the Middle East; importer of broadcasting equipment from China (2021)

(2020)

domestic: fixed-line 16 per 100 and mobile-cellular telephone subscribership 138 telephones per 100 persons (209)

international: country code - 974; landing points for the Qatar-UAE Submarine Cable System, AAE-1, FOG, GBICS/East North Africa MENA and the FALCON submarine cable network that provides links to Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Europe and Southeast Asia; tropospheric scatter to Bahrain; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia and the UAE; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat; retains full ownership of two commercial satellites, Es'hailSat 1 and 2 (2019)

note: the COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a significant impact on production and supply chains globally; since 2020, some aspects of the telecom sector have experienced downturn, particularly in mobile device production; many network operators delayed upgrades to infrastructure; progress towards 5G implementation was postponed or slowed in some countries; consumer spending on telecom services and devices was affected by large-scale job losses and the consequent restriction on disposable incomes; the crucial nature of telecom services as a tool for work and school from home became evident, and received some support from governments

general assessment:

one of the most progressive telecom markets in the Middle East; mobile penetration high, with a saturated market; mobile operators competitive and meeting the demand for workers, students and citizens working from home; Huawei partners with operator to provide 5G to dozens of cities; broadband is available with DSL, fiber, and wireless; mobile penetration is high; restrictive monarchy places limits on information and services available online; authorities operate extensive censorship and surveillance systems; major importer of broadcasting equipment from UAE and China (2020)

(2020)

domestic: fixed-line 16 per 100 and mobile-cellular subscribership has been increasing rapidly to 121 per 100 persons (2019)

international: country code - 966; landing points for the SeaMeWe-3, -4, -5, AAE-1, EIG, FALCON, FEA, IMEWE, MENA/Gulf Bridge International, SEACOM, SAS-1, -2, GBICS/MENA, and the Tata TGN-Gulf submarine cables providing connectivity to Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Southeast Asia and Australia; microwave radio relay to Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, UAE, Yemen, and Sudan; coaxial cable to Kuwait and Jordan; satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (3 Atlantic Ocean and 2 Indian Ocean), 1 Arabsat, and 1 Inmarsat (Indian Ocean region) (2019)

note: the COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a significant impact on production and supply chains globally; since 2020, some aspects of the telecom sector have experienced downturn, particularly in mobile device production; many network operators delayed upgrades to infrastructure; progress towards 5G implementation was postponed or slowed in some countries; consumer spending on telecom services and devices was affected by large-scale job losses and the consequent restriction on disposable incomes; the crucial nature of telecom services as a tool for work and school from home became evident, and received some support from governments

Broadband - fixed subscriptionstotal: 284,679

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 11.82 (2019 est.)
total: 6,801,949

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 20.2 (2019 est.)
Broadcast mediaTV and radio broadcast licensing and access to local media markets are state controlled; home of the satellite TV channel Al-Jazeera, which was originally owned and financed by the Qatari government but has evolved to independent corporate status; Al-Jazeera claims editorial independence in broadcasting; local radio transmissions include state, private, and international broadcasters on FM frequencies in Doha; in August 2013, Qatar's satellite company Es'hailSat launched its first communications satellite Es'hail 1 (manufactured in the US), which entered commercial service in December 2013 to provide improved television broadcasting capability and expand availability of voice and Internet; Es'hailSat launched its second commercial satellite in 2018 with aid of SpaceX (2019)broadcast media are state-controlled; state-run TV operates 4 networks; Saudi Arabia is a major market for pan-Arab satellite TV broadcasters; state-run radio operates several networks; multiple international broadcasters are available

Source: CIA Factbook