Moldova Communications 2022, CIA World Factbook

total subscriptions: 1,027,689 (2020 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 25 (2020 est.)

Telephones - mobile cellular

total subscriptions: 3,420,383 (2020 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 85 (2020 est.)

Telecommunication systems

general assessment: the telecom market has been affected by a combination of high unemployment and economic difficulties which have led to constraints on consumer spending; this has resulted in telecom revenue having fallen steadily in recent years; this decline continued into 2020, with a 6.3% in revenue from the important mobile sector alone, year-on-year; Moldova’s aspirations to join the EU have encouraged the government and regulator to adopt a range of measures to bring the country’s telecoms sector into line with EU principles and standards; in July 2017 the Electronic Communications Act was amended to accommodate the 2009 European regulatory framework, while further amendments were adopted in December 2017 and additional changes were proposed in 2019; Moldova is also part of the Eastern Partnership group of countries, and as such has set in train a glide path to reducing roaming charges, effective between 2022 and 2026; the country’s broadband strategy through to 2025 has been supported by the ITU and industry counterparts from Korea; the internet market is developing rapidly, and though the penetration rate is well below the average for most European countries there are many opportunities for further development; the market is highly competitive, with 101 active ISPs as of early 2021; the number of cable broadband subscribers is increasing steadily, though fiber is now by far the strongest sector; by the end of 2020 fiber accounted for about 72.3% of all fixed broadband connections; the mobile market has also grown rapidly, and the sector accounts for the majority of total telecoms revenue; the near comprehensive geographical reach of their mobile networks, market brand recognition and existing customer relationships will make for steady subscriber growth in coming years (2022)

domestic: competition among mobile telephone providers has spurred subscriptions; little interest in expanding fixed-line service which is roughly 25 per 100; mobile-cellular teledensity nearly 85 per 100 persons (2020)

international: country code - 373; service through Romania and Russia via landline; satellite earth stations - at least 3 - Intelsat, Eutelsat, and Intersputnik

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 a downturn, particularly in mobile device production; progress toward 5G implementation has resumed, as well as upgrades to infrastructure; consumer spending on telecom services has increased due to the surge in demand for capacity and bandwidth; the crucial nature of telecom services as a tool for work and school from home is still evident, and the spike in this area has seen growth opportunities for development of new tools and increased services

Broadcast media

state-owned national radio-TV broadcaster operates 1 TV and 1 radio station; a total of nearly 70 terrestrial TV channels and some 50 radio stations are in operation; Russian and Romanian channels also are available (2019)

Internet country code

.md

Internet users

total: 3,067,466 (July 2022 est.)

percent of population: 76.3% (July 2022 est.)

Broadband - fixed subscriptions

total: 719,001 (2020 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 18 (2020 est.)

NOTE: The information regarding Moldova on this page is re-published from the 2022 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Moldova 2022 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Moldova 2022 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.