Internet in Tokelau

Internet in Tokelau is provided by Teletok, the government-owned[1] communications corporation, and Taloha Inc., a private company formed by the Dutch Joost Zuurbier.

[2] In the year 2000,[3] Joost Zuurbier realised that as Tokelau held an ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 country code it was entitled to a domain name under ICANN regulations.

He went to Tokelau and negotiated a deal under which his company would be able to act as the registrar for .tk domain names, in exchange for a licensing fee and the provision of free internet connectivity for the residents of the atolls.

[4] Before this, the three atolls had only one computer each, and the internet connection was so slow that it could only be used for email, without attachments.

[3] According to Zuurbier, an internet connection that would cost $10 per month in the United States costs approximately $2000 per month to provide in Tokelau,[4] and because Tokelau has a GDP (PPP) per capita of only $1035, most Tokelauans would be unable to afford an internet connection without outside assistance.