While telecommunications have advanced greatly in Estonia’s urban areas, the overall infrastructure in rural areas is worsening, warns the daily newspaper Postimees:

“There are dozens of small towns where trains haven’t stopped for a long time now; bus routes are being reduced; post offices are shut down; cash machines are nowhere to be found and the next shops are several kilometres away.

Still, these problems would be bearable if one could get quick and reliable Internet access. But while telecommunications firms seem to have a lot of cash for ad campaigns, claiming that their particular network is the best in the world and constantly coming up with new PR tricks somewhere in Tallinn, the reality is a different story.

Anyone who has a new 3G mobile phone in their pocket is well aware that their super-fast Internet access, available in the deepest forest, only works in advertisments – and that’s the real gap between city and country.”