Telecommunication systems: general assessment:
French Polynesia has one of the most advanced telecom infrastructures in the Pacific islands; high penetration of mobile broadband coverage; almost half of mobile connections on 3G, growing subscribership to 4G LTE; universal mobile penetration; host of uplink systems for the Galileo satellite network, creating hub for communications in the region and vastly improving international connectivity; submarine cable connections increase international bandwidth; additional domestic submarine cable will connect remote islands (2021)
(2020)domestic: fixed-line subscriptions 22 per 100 persons and mobile-cellular density is roughly 104 per 100 persons (2019)
international: country code - 689; landing points for the NATITUA, Manatua, and Honotua submarine cables to other French Polynesian Islands, Cook Islands, Niue, Samoa and US; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) (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
Definition: This entry includes a brief general assessment of a country's telecommunications system with details on the domestic and international components. The following terms and abbreviations are used throughout the entry:
Source: CIA World Factbook - This page was last updated on Saturday, September 18, 2021
