BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 20
By Klavdiya Romakayeva - Trend:
The number of mobile subscribers in Uzbekistan in the first quarter of 2021 increased to 27 million, Trend reports with reference to the Ministry for the Development of Information Technologies and Communications of Uzbekistan.
According to the ministry, the total length of fiber-optic communication lines in Uzbekistan in 2020 amounted to 68,600 kilometers, and according to the results of 1Q2021 it was already equal to 81,700 kilometers. By the end of this year, it is planned to bring this figure to 118,600 kilometers.
Also, a million ports for broadband internet access have been installed, bringing the total number to three million. By the end of 2021, this figure will be increased to 3.9 million.
In connection with the completion of the main part of the work on this project, starting from January 1, 2021, the price of rent for communication channels in Uzbekistan was reduced by half.
In addition, if in 2020 the total number of base stations for mobile communications amounted to 31,700 pieces, then in 1Q2021, 945 new stations were put into operation, bringing the total number to 32,680.
As for the number of subscribers to mobile services, if in 2013 their number did not exceed 20.3 million, then by the end of 1Q2021 this figure was brought to 27 million.
At the same time, the internet speed is also gradually increasing. So, if in 2013 the throughput of the international data transmission network amounted to 7 Gb/s, then by the end of 2020 this figure was already 1,200 Gb/s.
Currently, the projects based on 3G/4G technologies are being implemented in Uzbekistan. In particular, in 2020 alone, 3,600 2G base stations were upgraded according to 3G/4G standards. In addition, 5,641 new stations were installed and put into operation. Some 945 new base stations of mobile communications were installed in 1Q2021.
The ministry also reports that since September 2019, two local mobile operators - Uzmobile and Ucell - have begun test trials of 5G technology, and currently 15 base stations are operating in test mode in Tashkent.
Furthermore, work is underway to lower prices for internet services. In 2019-2020, as a result of a significant increase in technical capacities, tariffs for renting international switching packages for 1 Mbit/s were halved and until recently amounted to 40,000 soums ($3.78).
“This, in turn, made it possible to expand the activities of operators and providers in remote regions of Uzbekistan. And since May of the current price, this tariff has been reduced by another 30 percent, and today it is 32,000 soums ($3.03),” the message said.
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