Uzbekistan Telecommunications
For information on Uzbekistan Telecommunications contact details, please see the following link:
4.9 Uzbekistan Additional Service Provision Contact List
Telecommunications networks in Uzbekistan are largely based on
Soviet-built infrastructure but with many modern additions, making
the country one of the leading in the region in terms of
informational development.
In 2012, the telecommunications services volume grew by 22.5%
year-on-year in Uzbekistan. The amount of broadband ports installed
totalled 378,000 across the country at the end of 2012, up by 55.5%
year-on-year. The number of ports in active use was 202,700 up by
37.2%. A total of 1,576 km of fibre optic backbone lines were
deployed across the country in the same year.
There are digital exchanges in large cities and rural areas.
The main line telecommunications system is dilapidated and
telephone density is low. The state-owned telecommunications
company, Uzbektelecom, has used loans from the Japanese government
and the China Development Bank to improve mainline services. The
completion of conversion to digital exchanges was in 2010. Mobile
services are growing rapidly, with the subscriber base reaching 25
million in 2011.
Uzbekistan is linked by fiber-optic cable or microwave radio relay
with CIS member states and to other countries by leased connection
via the Moscow international gateway switch. After the completion
of the Uzbek link to the Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) fiber-optic
cable,[3] Uzbekistan plans to establish a fiber-optic connection to
Afghanistan
Currently, Uzbekistan has four AM stations, 12 FM stations, and
three shortwave stations. Additionally, as of 1997, there are an
estimated 10.2 million radios in use in Uzbekistan.
Uzbekistan has 28 television broadcast stations. This includes one
cable rebroadcaster in Taskent and approximately 20 stations in
regional capitals
Telephone Services |
||
---|---|---|
Is there an existing landline telephone network? (Yes / No) |
yes
|
|
Does it allow international calls? (Yes / No) |
yes |
|
On average, number and length of downtime periods |
minimum | |
Mobile phone providers (List) |
Beeline Uzbekistan, Ucell, UzMobile , Perfectum Mobile | |
Estimated availability and coverage (Approximate percentage of national coverage) |
covers nearly all Uzbekistan region |
Telecommunication Regulation
For a long time Uzbekistan’s telecom infrastructure remained
outmoded and inadequate. The country has been struggling to bring
its telecommunications system up to the standard found in developed
markets. Nevertheless, over the last decade or so, the situation
has been gradually improving. This has in part been due to the
government’s decision to give national priority to Information and
Communications Technologies. Consequently there has been an upward
trend in the country’s telecom market, with increased investment in
infrastructure, expanding subscriber bases and rising revenues. The
government’s strategic policy was to privatise the incumbent
operator Uzbektelecom and to open the market to competition in
accordance with the country’s aim to join the World Trade
Organization (WTO).
The telecom sector has been regulated by the Uzbek Agency for
Communications and Information (UzACI) since the creation of the
agency in 2002/2003. In 2005 the UzACI approved a
telecommunications investment program for the period 2005-2010.
Among other things, the program aimed to increase the total number
of fixed lines to 2.2 million and achieve 100% digitalisation of
the network by 2010. The fixed line subscriber target was not
achieved with subscriber numbers still languishing below 1.9
million. And only about two-thirds of the network was digital by
2007, but by March 2009 this has been lifted sharply to 89%,
according to the Uzbek Agency for Communications and Information,
and effectively achieved the target by end-2010. In the meantime
fixed teledensity was stuck on around 7%. The five year telecom
investment program also aimed at accomplishing marked improvements
in mobile telephone and internet penetration. By 2011 both these
segments of the market had shown significantly gains, with the
mobile market in particular having expanded rapidly over the five
years. Subscriber numbers had jumped from around one million to 21
million over the plan period. Funding for the investment program
was provided by loans and foreign investment, the internal
resources of operators and providers, as well as from government
funding.
For information on Uzbekistan Telecommunications additional information, please see the following document:
Uzbekistan Telecommunications Regulations Additional Information
Note: The information provided in the attached documents, which has been taken from the old DLCA, does not match the structure of the new LCA and is therefore provided separately.
Regulations |
||
---|---|---|
Regulations on usage or import of: |
Yes / No |
Regulating Authority |
Satellite |
Yes |
Uzbekistan Agency for Communications & Information (UzACI) |
HF Radio |
Yes |
Uzbekistan Agency for Communications & Information (UzACI) |
UHF/VHF/HF radio: handheld, base and mobile |
Yes |
Uzbekistan Agency for Communications & Information (UzACI) |
UHF/VHF repeaters |
Yes |
Uzbekistan Agency for Communications & Information (UzACI) |
GPS |
Yes |
Uzbekistan Agency for Communications & Information (UzACI) |
VSAT |
Yes |
Uzbekistan Agency for Communications & Information (UzACI) |
Individual Network Operator Licenses Required | ||
n/a | ||
Frequency Licenses Required | ||
n/a |