Iraq vs. Turkey
Telecommunications
| Iraq | Turkey | |
|---|---|---|
| Telephones - main lines in use | total subscriptions: 2,859,094 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 7.52 (2019 est.) | total subscriptions: 11,532,903 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 14.13 (2019 est.) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | total subscriptions: 37,224,759 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 97.96 (2019 est.) | total subscriptions: 80,790,877 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 98.97 (2019 est.) |
| Internet country code | .iq | .tr |
| Internet users | total: 18,364,390 percent of population: 49.36% (July 2018 est.) | total: 57,725,143 percent of population: 71.04% (July 2018 est.) |
| Telecommunication systems | general assessment: the 2003 liberation of Iraq severely disrupted telecommunications throughout the country; widespread government efforts to rebuild domestic and international communications have slowed due to political unrest; recent efforts create stability and developments in 4G and 5G technologies; operators focus on installations of new fiber-optic cables and growth in mobile broadband subscribers; the most popular plans are pre-paid; operators focused on fixing and replacing networks (2020) (2020)domestic: the mobile cellular market continues to expand; 3G services offered by three major mobile operators; 4G offered by one operator in Iraqi; conflict has destroyed infrastructure in areas; 7 per 100 for fixed-line and 95 per 100 for mobile-cellular subscriptions (2019) international: country code - 964; landing points for FALCON, and GBICS/MENA submarine cables providing connections to the Middle East, Africa and India; satellite earth stations - 4 (2 Intelsat - 1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean, 1 Intersputnik - Atlantic Ocean region, and 1 Arabsat (inoperative)); local microwave radio relay connects border regions to Jordan, Kuwait, Syria, and Turkey (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: following earthquake damage to infrastructure in 2020, telecom sector undergoing rapid modernization and expansion, especially in mobile-cellular services; mobile broadband becoming increasingly popular; near saturation of 4G LTE coverage for the population; strides made with 5G through investment by Huawei and Ericcson; fixed and mobile infrastructure will help to underpin Smart City initiatives; tight government control on social media platforms; importer of broadcasting equipment and computers from China (2021) (2020)domestic: additional digital exchanges are permitting a rapid increase in subscribers; the construction of a network of technologically advanced intercity trunk lines, using both fiber-optic cable and digital microwave radio relay, is facilitating communication between urban centers; remote areas are reached by a domestic satellite system; fixed-line 14 per 100 and mobile-cellular teledensity is 97 telephones per 100 persons (2019) international: country code - 90; landing points for the SeaMeWe-3 & -5, MedNautilus Submarine System, Turcyos-1 & -2 submarine cables providing connectivity to Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Southeast Asia and Australia ; satellite earth stations - 12 Intelsat; mobile satellite terminals - 328 in the Inmarsat and Eutelsat systems (2020) 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 subscriptions | total: 4,559,053 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 12 (2019 est.) | total: 14,231,978 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 17.44 (2019 est.) |
| Broadcast media | the number of private radio and TV stations has increased rapidly since 2003; government-owned TV and radio stations are operated by the publicly funded Iraqi Media Network; private broadcast media are mostly linked to political, ethnic, or religious groups; satellite TV is available to an estimated 70% of viewers and many of the broadcasters are based abroad; transmissions of multiple international radio broadcasters are accessible (2019) | Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT) operates multiple TV and radio networks and stations; multiple privately owned national television stations and 567 private regional and local television stations; multi-channel cable TV subscriptions available; 1,007 private radio broadcast stations (2019) |
Source: CIA Factbook
