Page last updated on December 17, 2013

Telephones - main lines in use: 10.47 million (2012)
country comparison to the world: 20
[see also: Telephones - main lines in use country ranks ]

Telephones - mobile cellular:
24.4 million (2012)
country comparison to the world: 43
[see also: Telephones - mobile cellular country ranks ]

Telephone system:
general assessment: excellent domestic and international service
domestic: domestic satellite system; significant use of radiotelephone in areas of low population density; rapid growth of mobile telephones
international: country code - 61; landing point for the SEA-ME-WE-3 optical telecommunications submarine cable with links to Asia, the Middle East, and Europe; the Southern Cross fiber optic submarine cable provides links to New Zealand and the United States; satellite earth stations - 10 Intelsat (4 Indian Ocean and 6 Pacific Ocean), 2 Inmarsat, 2 Globalstar, 5 other) (2007)

Broadcast media:
the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) runs multiple national and local radio networks and TV stations, as well as Australia Network, a TV service that broadcasts throughout the Asia-Pacific region and is the main public broadcaster; Special Broadcasting Service (SBS), a second large public broadcaster, operates radio and TV networks broadcasting in multiple languages; several large national commercial TV networks, a large number of local commercial TV stations, and hundreds of commercial radio stations are accessible; cable and satellite systems are available (2008)

Internet country code:
.au

Internet hosts:
17.081 million (2012)
country comparison to the world: 8
[see also: Internet hosts country ranks ]

Internet users:
15.81 million (2009)
country comparison to the world: 25
[see also: Internet users country ranks ]