Telecommunications in Cyprus

Telecommunications in Cyprus includes radio, television, fixed and mobile telephones, and the Internet, in the Republic of Cyprus.

CYTA, the state-owned telecommunications company, manages most telecommunications and Internet connections on the island. However, following the recent liberalization of the telecommunications sector, a few private telecommunications companies, have emerged.

Radio and television
See also: List of radio stations in Cyprus and Television in Cyprus

The Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation (CyBC, Greek: ΡΙΚ, Turkish: KRYK) is the main broadcaster in Cyprus, although there are also privately owned radio and TV stations. A TV channel from the Greek state broadcaster ERT, is available. The British Forces Broadcasting Service also operates radio and TV stations, although the TV signal is now confined to the Sovereign Base Areas or encrypted for copyright reasons.

  • Radio stations: A mixture of state and privately run radio services; the public broadcaster operates 4 radio stations; in addition a number of private radio stations are available; in Turkish-occupied Northern Cyprus, there are 4 public radio stations as well as privately owned radio broadcast stations (2007).[1]
  • Radio receivers: 310,000 (1997).
  • Television stations: A mixture of state and privately run services; the public broadcaster operates 3 TV channels; 13 private TV broadcasters, satellite and cable TV services including telecasts from Greece and Turkey are available; in Turkish-occupied Northern Cyprus, there are 2 public TV stations, and privately owned TV broadcast stations (2007).[1]
  • Television sets: 248,000 (1997).
  • Public TV stations:
    • RIK 1, CyBC 1st channel, island-wide coverage.
    • RIK 2, CyBC 2nd channel, island-wide coverage.
    • RIK HD, CyBC HD channel, island-wide coverage.
    • ERT World, ERT sat channel, island-wide coverage.
    • Euronews, EBU sat channel, island-wide coverage.
  • Private TV stations:
    • 7Sports TV, satellite, island-wide coverage.
    • Alpha TV, free, island-wide coverage.
    • ANT1, free, island-wide coverage.
    • ART TV, free, island-wide coverage.
    • Cablenet 1, satellite, island-wide coverage.
    • Capital Cyprus, free, island-wide coverage.
    • CBC TV Mall Cy, free, island-wide coverage.
    • Greek Cinema, satellite, island-wide coverage.
    • MAD TV Cyprus, satellite, island-wide coverage.
    • Movies Best TV, satellite, island-wide coverage.
    • New Extra Cyprus, free, island-wide coverage.
    • Omega Channel, free, island-wide coverage.
    • Plus Channel, free, island-wide coverage.
    • Sigma TV, free, island-wide coverage.
    • Smile TV, free, island-wide coverage.
  • Subscriber TV: The first subscription channels in Cyprus were LTV and Alpha, offered by MultiChoice since the mid-1990s.
  • Some major subscription TV platforms today are:
    • AthenaSAT, offering approximately 15 channels via satellite.
    • Cablenet, offering services over their cable network with their triple-play package with over 30 channels.
    • CytaVision, offering approximately 30 channels via an ADSL IPTV platform, as well as LTV and Alfa.
    • Nova, with approximately 35 themed channels via satellite.
    • PrimeTel, offers more than 30 digital TV channels using ADSL IPTV, as well as LTV and Nova packages.

Telephones
Old telephone boxes in the Troodos Mountains.
See also: Telephone numbers in Cyprus and Telephone numbers in Northern Cyprus

Internet

Asymmetric digital subscriber line, the most widespread broadband technology in Cyprus, is available in most urban and sub-urban areas, with multiple providers offering packages that range from 512 kbit/s to 32 Mbit/s. Cable broadband is also available in some urban locations (Nicosia, Larnaca and Limassol) with speeds up to 150 Mbit/s. An internet service provider comparison website exists at the Cyprus Broadband portal.[4] Many wireless networks are appearing in Cyprus, some with no minimum contract/pay as you go[5] and others with a fixed contract. Quantum Cable is planned 7,700 km ultra high speed optical fiber submarine communications cable system connecting Cyprus with Greece, Israel, Italy, France and Spain.[6][7][8][9][10][11]

It is expected to have 160 terabits per second, capacity equivalent to streaming 80 million HD video conference calls at the same time. The Quantum Cable will be laid at same time with the 2,000 MW EuroAsia Interconnector. Quantum Cable will upgrade Cyprus to telecom hub and will support Data centers on Cyprus.[10][11]

Internet censorship and surveillance

There are no government restrictions on access to the Internet, with the exception that gambling sites not licensed by the Republic of Cyprus are blocked,[18] or reports that the government monitored email or Internet chat rooms without appropriate legal authority. Individuals and groups engage in the peaceful expression of views via the Internet, including e‑mail.[19] The law provides for freedom of speech and press and the government generally respects these rights in practice. An independent press, an effective judiciary, and a functioning democratic political system combine to ensure freedom of speech and press. The law prohibits arbitrary interference with privacy, family, home, or correspondence, and the government generally respects these prohibitions in practice.[19]

Northern Cyprus
Main article: Northern Cyprus

The north part of Cyprus is under occupation by the Turkish army. Called the "Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus" (TRNC) by Turkey, it comprises the northern portion of the island of Cyprus.[20][21]

International telephone calls to northern Cyprus are routed via a Turkish dialing code (+90 392) as northern Cyprus has neither its own country code nor official ITU prefix. Similarly, there is no Internet top-level domain for northern Cyprus, which is instead under the Turkish second-level domain .nc.tr. Amateur radio operators sometimes use call signs beginning with "1B", but these have no standing for awards or other operating credit.

See also

References
  1. "Communications", Cyprus. The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency., published 5 December 2013. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  2. Dialing Procedures (International Prefix, National (Trunk) Prefix and National (Significant) Number) (in Accordance with ITY-T Recommendation E.164 (11/2010)), Annex to ITU Operational Bulletin No. 994-15.XII.2011, International Telecommunication Union (ITU, Geneva), 15 December 2011. Retrieved 2 January 2014.
  3. Staff Reporter (2019-06-20). "MTN rebrands as epic". Cyprus Mail. Retrieved 2019-06-22.
  4. Cyprus Broadband portal. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  5. Cyprus Internet, Leap Wireless. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  6. 'Superfast' internet cable to cross Mediterranean sea, Business Insider, January 16, 2018
  7. 'Superfast' internet cable to cross Mediterranean sea, Phys.org
  8. 'Superfast' internet cable to cross Mediterranean sea, US News, January 16, 2018
  9. 'Superfast' internet cable to cross Mediterranean sea
  10. ‘Quantum Cable’ to revolutionise global telecoms, Cyprus Mail 18.1.2018
  11. Quantum Cable
  12. Calculated using penetration rate and population data from "Countries and Areas Ranked by Population: 2012", Population data, International Programs, U.S. Census Bureau, retrieved 26 June 2013
  13. "Percentage of Individuals using the Internet 2000-2012", International Telecommunications Union (Geneva), June 2013, retrieved 22 June 2013
  14. "Fixed (wired)-broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants 2012", Dynamic Report, ITU ITC EYE, International Telecommunication Union. Retrieved on 29 June 2013.
  15. "Active mobile-broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants 2012", Dynamic Report, ITU ITC EYE, International Telecommunication Union. Retrieved on 29 June 2013.
  16. Select Formats, Country IP Blocks. Accessed on 2 April 2012. Note: Site is said to be updated daily.
  17. Population, The World Factbook, United States Central Intelligence Agency. Accessed on 2 April 2012. Note: Data are mostly for 1 July 2012.
  18. "The Betting Law of 2012 (see section 65)" (PDF). National Betting Authority, Cyprus. Republic Of Cyprus. Retrieved 25 March 2017.
  19. "Cyprus", Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2012, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, U.S. Department of State, 22 March 2013. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  20. Emerson, Michael (2004). The Wider Europe Matrix. CPSE. ISBN 92-9079-469-0.
  21. "The status of Northern Cyprus as a separate entity is recognised only by Turkey, which keeps around 30,000 troops in the north of the island" in "Cyprus country profile", BBC News, 23 December 2011. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
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