Country code: 55. Rio's airport provides 24-hour telecommunication services. Public telephones accept telephone cards (cartões telefônicos), which can be obtained from newspaper kiosks. International calls from Brazil are expensive.

Mobile coverage is generally very good. Roaming agreements exist with most international mobile phone companies, but travellers should check with their service providers. An unlocked GSM tri- or quad-band cell phone works in Brazil, with SIM cards widely available. Minutes can be added via cartões pre-pago (prepaid cards), available at newspaper kiosks.

Many hotels provide Internet access to guests. Internet cafes can be found in main towns and cities, and there are often Internet booths at airports. In smaller towns, public access is sometimes available at post offices.

Services are generally reliable. Airmail service to Europe takes about one week. Surface mail takes at least four weeks.

Post office hours: Mon-Fri 0800-1800, Sat 0800-1200.

Brazil's constitution guarantees a free press. There are thousands of radio stations and hundreds of TV channels in Brazil, South America's largest media market. Media ownership is highly concentrated and home-grown conglomerates such as Globo, Brazil's most successful broadcaster, dominate the market, operating TV and radio networks, newspapers and pay-TV. Brazilian dramas and soaps are exported around the world. Novelas (soap operas) and reality TV are hugely popular.

• The Brazil Post (website: www.brazilpost.com) is a global news service.
• Daily newspapers include O Globo, O Dia and O Correio da Manhã.
• International magazines and newspapers are also available throughout the count.

• Major commercial networks include Rede Globo, Sistema Brasileiro de Televisao (SBT) and TV Record.
• NBR is operated by state-run Radiobras.
• TV Cultura is a public network offering cultural programming.

• Radiobras operates Radio Nacional.
• Globo runs commercial station Radio Globo.
• Radio Cultura offers cultural programming.