Malta Communications - 2024

Telephones - fixed lines

total subscriptions: 259,120 (2022 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 49 (2021 est.)

Telephones - mobile cellular

total subscriptions: 644,955 (2021 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 122 (2021 est.)

Telecommunication systems

general assessment: Malta’s small telecom sector is among the most advanced in Europe; this has been helped by the topography, which has made it relatively easy for operators to expand the reach of their fiber infrastructure; with high mobile and broadband penetration rates, the government and regulator have effective strategies in place to capitalize on these infrastructure developments to ensure that the population has among the fastest data rates in Europe, and is well positioned to take advantage of emerging e-commerce opportunities; the sector has also been stimulated by regulatory measures designed to reduce consumer prices; the incumbent telco is investing in a sub sea cable to connect the islands to France and Egypt; expected to be ready for service in 2022, the cable will further enhance Malta’s internet bandwidth and lead to reduced prices for end-users; there has also been some encouragement to increase market competition (2021)

domestic: fixed-line approximately 49 per 100  persons and mobile-cellular subscribership 122 per 100 persons (2021)

international: country code - 356; landing points for the Malta-Gozo Cable, VMSCS, GO-1 Mediterranean Cable System, Malta Italy Interconnector, Melita-1, and the Italy-Malta submarine cable connections to Italy; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2019)

Broadcast media

2 publicly owned TV stations, Television Malta broadcasting nationally plus an educational channel; several privately owned national television stations, 2 of which are owned by political parties; Italian and British broadcast programs are available; multi-channel cable and satellite TV services are available; publicly owned radio broadcaster operates 3 stations; roughly 20 commercial radio stations (2019)

Internet country code

.mt

Internet users

total: 461,100 (2021 est.)

percent of population: 87% (2021 est.)

Broadband - fixed subscriptions

total: 213,419 (2020 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 48 (2020 est.)