Telephones - mobile cellular:

4.83 million (2008) country comparison to the world: 89

Telephone system:

general assessment: privatization begun in 1995; reliability has steadily improved; new subscribers face bureaucratic difficulties; most telephones are concentrated in La Paz and other cities; mobile-cellular telephone use expanding rapidly; fixed-line teledensity of 7 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular telephone density slighly exceeds 50 per 100 persons

domestic: primary trunk system, which is being expanded, employs digital microwave radio relay; some areas are served by fiber-optic cable; mobile cellular systems are being expanded

international: country code - 591; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2008)

Radio broadcast stations:

AM 171, FM 73, shortwave 77 (1999)

Television broadcast stations:

48 (1997)