Gilbert and Ellice Islands around $250 million for revenue they had not received and for environmental destruction caused by phosphate mining practices similar to those on Nauru. The British authorities had relocated most of the population to Rabi Island, Fiji after 1945, but by the 1970s many were returning to Banaba. The British rejected the Banaban independence proposal, and the island remained under the jurisdiction of Kiribati. The Gilbert and Ellice Islands used their own postage stamps from 1911. Gilbert and Ellice Islands The Gilbert and Ellice Islands were a British protectorate from 1892 and colony from 1916 until 1 January 1976, when the
Telecommunications in the United States Virgin Islands treated as domestic, while multimedia messages (MMS) are unavailable for Verizon customers. Telephone system: Country code / area code +1-340 Radio broadcast stations: 24 radio stations broadcasting (2009) Radios: 107,000 (2003) Television broadcast stations: about a dozen television broadcast stations including 1 public TV station; multi-channel cable and satellite TV services are available (2009) Televisions: 68,000 (1997) The U.S. Virgin Islands' country code top-level domain is .vi. Internet hosts: 8,933 (2010) Internet users: 30,000 (2008) Locally owned and operated Internet Service Provider: SM@RTNET www.smartnet.vi Providing Internet service via fixed wireless and Fiber Optics. Telecommunications in the United States Virgin Islands