Telecommunications in Puerto Rico

Telecommunications in Puerto Rico includes radio, television, fixed and mobile telephones, and the Internet.

Broadcasting in Puerto Rico is regulated by the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC).^[1]

History

Telegraph service was inaugurated in 1869, responding to an 1864 order by Spanish Governor Felix Maria Mesian.^[2] By 1872, the entire island had telegraph service as well as international connections to the rest of the Caribbean and Europe.^[3]

The Puerto Rico Communications Authority (La Autoridad de Comunicaciones de Puerto Rico) was created with Law No. 212, on May 12, 1942. Five years later, the department was located at 1314 Juan Ponce de León Avenue in Santurce.^[4]

Radio

The Edificio del Telégrafo in Santurce, Puerto Rico, was built in 1947.^[4]

See also: List of radio stations in Puerto Rico

• Stations: 140 radio stations (as of January 2015).^[5][6]

Television

See also: List of television stations in Puerto Rico

WIPR-TV ("Wonderful Island of Puerto Rico") was inaugurated on January 26, 1949.^[4][7]

• Stations: more than 30 TV stations operating; three stations of the US Armed Forces Radio and Television Service; cable TV subscription services are available (2007).^[8]
• Television sets: 1.0 million sets (1997).^{[needs update]}

Telephones

See also: Telephone numbers in Puerto Rico

Historic building which is now a Telephone and Telegraph museum in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico

• Calling code-area codes: +1-787, +1-939^[8]
• International call prefix: 00^[9]
• Main lines: 780,200 lines in use, 87th in the world (2012).^[8]
• Mobile cellular: 3.1 million lines, 130th in the world (2012).^[8]
• System: modern digital system integrated with that of the United States (2011).^[8]
• Satellite earth stations: Intelsat with high-speed data capability (2011).^[8]
• Communications cables: provide connectivity to the US, Caribbean, Central and South America (2011).^[8]

Internet

Hurricane Maria destroyed the internet systems in Puerto Rico in September 2017.^[10] Then in 2019, the US Federal Communications Commission stated $950 million had been approved for the rebuilding and strengthening of Puerto Rico's and the Virgin Island's internet infrastructure.^[11]

• Top-level domain: .pr^[8]
• Internet users: 1.9 million users, 92nd in the world; 51.4% of the population, 83rd in the world (2012).^[12][13]
• Fixed broadband: available to 65% of Puerto Ricans (2012).^[14]
• Wireless broadband: available to 98.7% of Puerto Ricans (2012).^[14]
• Available broadband technologies as a percentage of population: 48.2% DSL, 0.1% Fiber, 59.6% cable, 84.7% wireless (2012).^[14]
• Internet hosts: 469 hosts, 184th in the world (2012).^[8]
• IPv4: 1 million addresses allocated, less than 0.05% of the world total, 250.2 addresses per 1000 people (2012).^[15][16]
• Internet Service Providers: 19 ISPs (1999).^{[needs update]}

Internet censorship and surveillance

Further information: Internet censorship in the United States

See also

• Puerto Rico portal

• Economy of Puerto Rico
• Internet Exchange of Puerto Rico, no longer operating as of 2011.
• Media of Puerto Rico

References

•  This article incorporates public domain material from The World Factbook (2024 ed.). CIA. (Archived 2013 edition.)

1. "Puerto Rico profile", BBC News, 23 May 2013. Retrieved 8 January 2014.
2. Eduardo Neumann Gandia, "Verdadera y Autentica Historia de la Ciudad de Ponce", Instituto de Cultura Puertorriqueña, 1987, p. 121.
3. Eduardo Neumann Gandia, "Verdadera y Autentica Historia de la Ciudad de Ponce", Instituto de Cultura Puertorriqueña, 1987, p. 121.
4. "Edificio del Telégrafo" (in Spanish). Sociedad Puertorriqueña de Arquitectura Histórica. 2013-05-08. Retrieved 2021-01-23.
5. "FM Query - FM Radio Technical Information - Audio Division (FCC) USA". Archived from the original on August 25, 2009.
6. "AM Query - AM Radio Technical Information - Audio Division (FCC) USA". Archived from the original on August 25, 2009.
7. "WIPR: "La Maestra de la Televisión" que sigue transformando la vida de jóvenes". WIPR. October 18, 2019. Retrieved December 14, 2021.
8. "Communications: Puerto Rico", World Factbook, U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, 9 December 2013. Retrieved 8 January 2014.
9. Dialing Procedures (International Prefix, National (Trunk) Prefix and National (Significant) Number) (in Accordance with ITY-T Recommendation E.164 (11/2010)), Annex to ITU Operational Bulletin No. 994-15.XII.2011, International Telecommunication Union (ITU, Geneva), 15 December 2011. Retrieved 2 January 2014.
10. "After Hurricane Maria, Puerto Rico's Internet Problems Go from Bad to Worse". www.pbs.org.
11. "FCC Invests $950 Million to Improve Broadband in Puerto Rico, USVI". Federal Communications Commission. September 26, 2019.
12. Calculated using penetration rate and population data from "Countries and Areas Ranked by Population: 2012" Archived 2017-03-29 at the Wayback Machine, Population data, International Programs, U.S. Census Bureau, retrieved 26 June 2013
13. "Percentage of Individuals using the Internet 2000-2012", International Telecommunication Union (Geneva), June 2013, retrieved 22 June 2013
14. Puerto Rico summary, National Broadband Map, 31 December 2012.
15. Select Formats Archived 2009-05-13 at the Wayback Machine, Country IP Blocks. Accessed on 2 April 2012. Note: Site is said to be updated daily.
16. Population, The World Factbook, United States Central Intelligence Agency. Accessed on 2 April 2012. Note: Data are mostly for 1 July 2012.

External links

• About NIC.pr, the registrar for the .pr top-level domain name.
• Internet Society Puerto Rico
• Federal government grants to expand broadband Internet access in Puerto Rico, Broadband USA.
• Puerto Rico summary, National Broadband Map, 31 December 2012.
• Radio Puerto Rico
• El Nuevo Dia
• WIPR-TV 6 & WIPM-TV 3