(telecompaper) – The telecommunications services volume grew by 22.5% year-on-year in Uzbekistan in 2012, according to data from the State Communications Committee. The amount of broadband ports installed totalled 378,000 across the country at the end of 2012, up by 55.5% year-on-year. The number of ports in active use was 202,700 up by 37.2%. A total of 1,576 km of fibre optic backbone lines were deployed across the country in 2012.

There were over 9 mln Internet users in Uzbekistan as of 19 March 2012, according to Uzbekistan’s Agency for Communications and Information (UzACI).

Uzbekistan is linked by fibre-optic cable and microwave radio relay with CIS member states and to other countries by leased connection via the Moscow international gateway switch. After the completion of the Uzbek link to the Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) fibre-optic cable, Uzbekistan plans to establish a fibre-optic connection to Afghanistan.

Major highlights (after BuddComm):

• By early 2012 mobile penetration in Uzbekistan had moved past 90%, with mobile subscriber numbers having increased to over 25 mln.
• After the country’s mobile subscriber base grew by more than 100% in 2008, annual expansion has eased to around between 20%-30%.
• Fixed-line growth in Uzbekistan has been almost non-existent in recent time.
• With slightly less than 2 mln fixed subscribers, fixed penetration continues to sit at just 7%; however, has been the accelerated conversion of the fixed network from analogue to digital with the 100% target having been effectively achieved.
• On the basis of published statistics, recent growth in internet usage has been considerable and user penetration had reportedly reached 30%;
• There is an ongoing surge in the growth of broadband internet subscriptions, but from a very small subscriber base;
• Fixed broadband subscriber penetration is still below 1% in 2012;