Landlines

Setting up a landline in Italy

The Italian telecommunication market is dominated by Telecom Italia, the former state-owned monopolist. Although users can choose from many telephone providers, almost all fixed line hardware is provided by Telecom Italia.

To subscribe to Telcom Italia's services, you will need to call 187 or visit one of its stores. Telecom Italia also offers broadband internet with its Alice ADSL package, and you can get an “all-included” contract for your telephone and internet at a monthly fixed rate.

Currently, customers can choose an alternate operator to Telecom Italia for urban, interurban and international calls. Besides Telecom Italia, there is a multitude of alternative providers which offer a confusing range of telecommunication services, including fixed lines, broadband, VoIP, mobile connection or any given combination of those.

These days, a growing number of people does not get any fixed line at all, but choose to use their mobile connection for both phone calls and internet access.

Amongst others, you might want to check out the following providers:

• Tiscali  is present in the telecommunications market, and they offer combination packages for telephony and internet. If you want to have Telecom Italia be your telephone operator but Tiscali be your internet provider, this is not a problem because you can use the same wiring system for both services.
• Fastweb  is the main operator of the broadband telecommunications in fixed net in Italy. However, it does not have total national coverage, and if you live in the countryside you may not have access.
• Infostrada  will supply fixed lines as well as internet access.
• Vodafone  can be used either to call or to surf internet. All you need to do is connect your fixed phone to your Vodafone Station for telephone and internet services.

How to set up telephone service in your house

It's not difficult to get a telephone line in Italy. To apply for service, you should call your preferred company or go to one of their stores. Here you have a list of what information you need in order to get service:

• tax number (codice fiscale)
• address where the line needs to be installed
• phone number at which the applicant may be contacted
• type of service required (e.g. basic analogue, ISDN)
• number of extensions required
• additional telephone service required, such as a special tariff package
• model (name, colour) of telephone, if applicable
• whether the applicant would like their number to be included in the local phone book

Your company will assign you a landline number.

If you are moving into a new home or a home which has wiring from another company, you may need to set up an appointment with a technician to make the wire connection. It can take anywhere from a few days to a couple of weeks for the technician to come.

Calling plans

There are two general types of payment plans. Piana (fixed rate) plans charge you a fixed rate per minute no matter what time of the day you call. Forfait (all-included rate) plans involve the payment of a canone (standing charge) every month, but you can call any landline in Italy without time constraints. For international calls or calls to mobiles, you pay a fee.

Comparing phone rates in Italy

If you want to research how much calling in Italy will cost, there are some very practical fee calculators and preview costs provided by websites like www.tariffe.it  and www.centroconsumatori.it .