The application of tax of $0.65 per mobile phone line that had been proposed by the Executive to fund part of the 2015 budget has been temporarily suspended.
The Constitutional Court temporarily suspended the collection of the tax on telephone lines after the Chamber of Industry and the three phone companies operating in the country submitted an appeal against the tax.
In response to approval of a new tax of $0.65 per telephone line, operating companies have returned 6 million lines to the Telecommunications Superintendency.
Representatives from Claro, Tigo and Telefónica each returned 2 million inactive numbers with the aim of adjusting their internal policies to adapt to the new tax which will come into effect next year.
95% of the 21 million handsets registered as operational in July 2013 are prepaid.
The data was released by the Superintendency of Telecommunications (SIT). "Of every 10 active phones, nine are prepaid and only one uses a payment plan by the company providing the service," reported Prensalibre.com.
According to these statistics, Tigo reports 9.6 million prepaid lines, ie 49% of all subscribers.
During 2012, mobile telephony saw a total of almost 21 million users, an increase of 6.7% compared to 2011.
According to statistics from the Superintendency of Telecommunications (SIT) in the past 9 years, mobile telephony has grown by 556%.
In 2003, Guatemala had more than three million subscribers, however, the figures indicate that as of 2009 the market stagnated and growth per year reduced to a million customers.
From 3.1 million lines in 2004, mobile telephony in Guatemala has increased sevenfold, amounting to to 20.7 million lines at the end of 2011.
In the second half of 2011, more than two million new users were added to the market, making the number of users around the country at the end of December 2011 20.7 million, according to the Superintendencia de Telecomunicaciones (SIT).
Growth rates are lower, and statistics show that there are 132 cell lines per 100 inhabitants, a fact that is leading phone companies to adopt new strategies for growth.
The growth rate of mobile telephony in Guatemala decreased from 2.5 million lines per year in 2005 to only about 460 thousand in 2010, a sign of market maturity. Today, Guatemala has 132 mobile phone lines per 100 inhabitants.
The company Telefonica and the Movistar brand have launched commercial HSPA+ hardware in the country.
Salvador Montes de Oca, director of Marketing and Advertising at Movistar Guatemala told the media that HSPA + technology offers download speeds of up to 21 data megabits per second (Mbps) and 5.7 Mbps for sending information.
For his part, Manuel Barrera executive of Claro "announced last November 24 the company's transition to the use of such technology.
The increase in the number of mobile phone line users during the first half of 2011 was almost half a million.
As of 30 June, the total number of lines stood at 18,528,667, an increase of 5.7% compared to the same period in 2010, according to preliminary information from the Superintendency of Telecommunications (SIT).
The company Tigo has 43% of the cell phone market, followed by Claro, with 34% and Telefonica with 23.1%.
Telephony revenue increased 10.5% between 2008 and 2009; the sector represents 6.5% of GDP and 8.3% of tax revenue.
According to reports published by Pyramid Research, the telephone market in Guatemala generated revenue of $ 2.1 billion in 2009, of which $ 1.37 billion (66%) were generated by mobile services.
The numbers also show the remarkable growth experienced by mobile operators in recent years: 4.5 million mobile lines in 2005 to 17.3 million in 2009, meaning there are now 126 phones per 100 inhabitants.
The computer maker and the telecommunications company seek to double the region’s internet penetration.
Under the terms of the alliance, the companies will market plans for customers to acquire computers and internet access services with special financing programs, explained Jorge Castillo, commercial director at Claro Guatemala.
Castillo added that 4 of HP’s computers will be sold at Claro’s stores with internet access included.
The telecommunications market in Guatemala will grow at a compound rate of 5% over the next 5 years, reaching $2.800 million in 2014.
Revenues for this market were $1.9 billion in 2009, out of which 62% was generated by the mobile segment, according to a recent study by Pyramid Research. This segment would grow at a 13.7% annual rate over the next 5 years and "though messaging will remain the main source of revenue, connectivity will gain more than 10 percentage points of total revenue fueled by mobile Internet and mobile broadband", states a press release in Reuters.com.
Tigo controls 48% of the cellular market, with over 4.9 million subscribers.
The remainder of the market is distributed between Claro and Telefónica, according to data from the International Telecommunications Union.
"... the number of cell phones in Guatemala has doubled during the past 5 years. In 2003 there were 49 phones for each 100 inhabitants. This figure was 109 in 2008", reported Elperiodico.com.gt.
The price of the device will vary depending on the services being acquired, informed Litza Escobar, from Claro.
Prices go from $199 for the 16GB version, to $299 for the 32GB one, according to information published on the Internet.
"The touch screen telephone competes with RIM's Blackberry, which is more orientated to businesses, and with the new Palm Pre, which has registered a solid demand since its market entry", published Prensalibre.com.
At the close of 2008, there were 14 million 948 thousand cell phone users, according to a report by the Superintendent of Telecommunications (SIT).
SIT also reported a slight growth of 2.52% in fixed telephone service.
Urías Gamarro wrote about the SIT report in Prensalibre.com: "As of December 31, 2008, Claro reported 5.906 million users, equaling 39.50% of the market; the Tigo Company reported 34.60% and Movistar 25.90%."