Instrumental in founding the Universal Postal Union, Germany early on set standards for international communications and the development of an integrated internal system, which has developed with technological advances from land mail (Turn und Taxis), to telegraph, to modern-day telephone and satellite communications. The Universal Postal Union (UPU) is a international organization that coordinates postal policies between member nations, and hence the world-wide postal system. ... The Princely House of Thurn und Taxis is a German family that was a key player in the postal (mail) services in Europe in the 16th century and is well known as owners of breweries and builders of countless castles. ... The first telegraph links in Europe Telegraphy (from the Greek words tele = far and graphein = write) is the long-distance transmission of written messages without physical transport of letters, originally over wire. ... A satellite is any object that orbits another object (which is known as its primary). ...

Telephones - main lines in use: NA; 46.5 million main lines are installed (July 1999) The telephone or phone (Greek: tele = far away and phone = voice) is a telecommunications device which is used to transmit and receive sound (most commonly voice and speech) across distance. ...

Telephones - mobile cellular: ca. 65 million (March 2003)

Telephone system: Germany has one of the world's most technologically advanced telecommunications systems. As a result of intensive capital expenditures since reunification, the formerly backward system of the eastern part of the country has been modernized (becoming the world's best, except in comparison with metropolitan systems) and integrated with that of the western part.

Germany is served by an extensive domestic system of automatic telephone exchanges connected by modern networks of fiber-optic cable, coaxial cable, microwave radio relay, and a domestic satellite system. Cellular telephone service is widely available and includes roaming service to many foreign countries. international: satellite earth stations - 14 Intelsat (12 Atlantic Ocean and 2 Indian Ocean), 1 Eutelsat, 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region), 2 Intersputnik (1 Atlantic Ocean region and 1 Indian Ocean region); 7 submarine cable connections; 2 HF radiotelephone communication centers; tropospheric scatter links Fiber Optic strands An optical fiber in American English or fibre in British English is a transparent thin fiber for transmitting light. ... Coaxial cable is an electrical cable consisting of a round conducting wire, surrounded by an insulating spacer, surrounded by a cylindrical conducting sheath, and usually surrounded by a final insulating layer. ... This page is about the radiation; for the appliance, see microwave oven. ... A satellite is any object that orbits another object (which is known as its primary). ... Cellular redirects here. ... Intelsat is the worlds largest commercial satellite communications services provider. ... Eutelsat S.A. is a French corporation which operates 24 telecommunications satellites in geosynchronous orbit. ...

Radio broadcast stations: AM 51, FM 767, shortwave 4 (1998) This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Radios: 77.8 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations: 9,513 (including repeaters) (1998)

Televisions: 51.4 million (1998)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 625 (1999) An Internet service provider (ISP, also called Internet access provider) is a business or organization that offers users access to the Internet and related services. ...

Internet Users: 47,182,628 (2004)

Country code: DE

External links

• Deutsche Post
• Deutsche Telekom