Iran Communications - 2024

Telephones - fixed lines

total subscriptions: 29,342,060 (2022 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 33 (2021 est.)

Telephones - mobile cellular

total subscriptions: 135,899,424 (2021 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 155 (2021 est.)

Telecommunication systems

general assessment: Iran’s telecom infrastructure has suffered from sanctions in recent years, which prevented the import of equipment and devices and encouraged widespread smuggling, with a consequent loss of tax revenue; to address this, the government introduced a device registration scheme, and bolstered the capacity for domestically manufactured mobile phones; companies have invested in broadening the reach of their LTE networks, which has increased network capacity and improved the quality of mobile broadband services; the country is also looking to 5G; the sector is still limited by low frequency bands; the government is addressing this with plans to reallocate the 3.5GHz band for 5G use; Iran is keen to grow its digital economy; Iran offers significant opportunities for growth in the telecoms sector; the country has one of the largest populations in the Middle East, and there is a high proportion of youthful, tech savvy users having considerable demand for both fixed and mobile telecom services; companies are offering national roaming to improve services in rural areas (2022)

domestic: approximately 33 per 100 for fixed-line and 155 per 100 for mobile-cellular subscriptions (2021)

international: country code - 98; landing points for Kuwait-Iran, GBICS & MENA, FALCON, OMRAN/3PEG Cable System, POI and UAE-Iran submarine fiber-optic cable to the Middle East, Africa and India; (TAE) fiber-optic line runs from Azerbaijan through the northern portion of Iran to Turkmenistan with expansion to Georgia and Azerbaijan; HF radio and microwave radio relay to Turkey, Azerbaijan, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Syria, Kuwait, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan; satellite earth stations - 13 (9 Intelsat and 4 Inmarsat) (2019)

Broadcast media

state-run broadcast media with no private, independent broadcasters; Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), the state-run TV broadcaster, operates more than 60 television channels, more than 50 radio stations, and dozens of newspapers and websites; about 20 foreign Persian-language TV stations broadcasting on satellite TV are capable of being seen in Iran; satellite dishes are illegal and, while their use is subjectively tolerated, authorities confiscate satellite dishes from time to time; most major international broadcasters transmit to Iran (2023)

Internet country code

.ir

Internet users

total: 69.52 million (2021 est.)

percent of population: 79% (2021 est.)

Broadband - fixed subscriptions

total: 9,564,195 (2020 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 11 (2020 est.)