Gilbert and Ellice Islands until 1977. A protectorate was generally established over this area (but not over these islands) by the Pacific Islanders Protection Act of 1857 and then in 1877 for the Western Pacific Territories. The sixteen islands of the Gilberts were declared a British Protectorate by Captain Davis R.N., of between 27 May and 17 June 1892. The Ellice Islands were declared a British Protectorate by Captain Gibson R.N., of , between 9 and 16 October of the same year. The British Western Pacific Territories (BWPT) were administered by a High Commissioner resident in Fiji. A Resident Commissioner, Charles Swayne, was appointed
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