Table 39

(Chapter 17: Communications, the Media and Information Technology)
Communications and Internet Services
  1997   2001   2002  
             
Postal services            
  Letter mail (million articles) 1 273   1 360   1 266  
  Parcels (thousands) 1 425   921   927  
             
Telecommunications and Internet Services          
  Telephone lines (thousands)            
    Business 1 526   1 765   1 708  
    Residential 2 098   2 161   2 134  
    Total 3 624   3 926   3 842
  Number of fax lines (thousand working lines) 343   411   546  
  Telephone lines per 1 000 population 556   581   564  
  Public mobile radiotelephone subscribers 320   630   617  
    per 1 000 population(1) [327]   [844]   [912]  
  Public radio paging subscribers per 1 000 population 143   37   29  
  Outward external telephone traffic (million minutes) 1 738   3 487   3 951  
  Number of licensed Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 124   258 * 235  
  Number of customers of the licensed            
    Internet Service Providers (ISPs)            
    Registered customer accounts with dial-up(2) —   2 018   1 372  
      access (thousands)            
    Registered broadband Internet access customer —   623   989  
      accounts (thousands)            
                   
Internet traffic volume            
  Customer access via public switched telephone 1 246   11 056   5 550  
    networks(3) (million minutes)            
  Customer access via broadband networks (terabits) —   73 607   215 296  
Notes: (1) Excluding pre-paid SIM cards. Figures including pre-paid SIM cards are presented in square brackets.
  (2) Excluding Internet pre-paid calling cards.
  (3) Excluding customer access via leased circuits.
Sources: Hong Kong Post.
(Enquiry Telephone No.: 2921 2231)
Office of the Telecommunications Authority.
(Enquiry Telephone No.: 2961 6652)