The government's proposal sets 40 goals which should be completed by 2021, focused on broadcasting, e-government, spectrum, the broadband digital divide and infrastructure.
From a statement issued by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Telecommunications (MICITT):
The Central Bank of Costa Rica has awarded Altus Consulting, Data Tell Tres Mil, SPC Internacional, and Vinet Technology Advisor, two contracts to supply telecommunications equipment.
The company Data Tres Mil de Costa Rica SA won the contract for the best price, of $6,956,678, while the other three bidders won contracts for amounts ranging between $8000 and $65,000.
A ruling by the Administrative Court has annulled the General Rules for Municipal Licenses for Telecommunications and is demanding the preparation of a new one in less than three months.
The ruling by the tribunal in a lawsuit filed by Claro in January 2014, indicates that the Municipality of Alajuela must pay damages to the company, after it argued that it was unable to build telecommunications infrastructure in the region of Alajuela because of the regulations by which the municipality was governed.
The country's loss of competitiveness because of the deterioration of basic infrastructure development, is replicated in the case of the internet where average speeds are only 2.8 Mbps, far from the world average and below that of most countries in the region.
Costa Rica stands out in Central America for the quality and volume of goods and services related to technology which it produces and exports.
The essential modernization of technical and administrative rules governing the sector is being hampered by the proposed inclusion of rules to control content.
EDITORIAL
The vaudeville act (from the Royal Spanish Academy: frivolous, light and spicy comedy based around intrigue and misunderstandings) presented and represented by the government of Costa Rica, regarding the development and "socialization" of the proposed new Telecommunications Act , has produced as its first result t a leaderless Ministry of Science, Technology and Telecommunications (Micitt).
Requests have been made for the clarification of which telecommunications services are to be taxed with VAT, since it is unclear whether it is information services or telecommunications which would be taxed.
Currently telecommunications services are charged sales tax, even though the Costa Rican government aims to close the digital divide. With this new reform proposal, a Value Added Tax (VAT) of 15%, "would be incurred ... It would be the first time that telecommunications services are integrated into a tax
Even though demand continues to grow, operators are not able to grow due to lack of effective competition in the mobile market and delays in the allocation of spectrum.
A portion of customers in the cellular market and other telecommunications services such as internet and cable television are still dissatisfied, but telecommunications companies are not able to increase their services due to the slow rate at which the rules are set and at which infrastructure problems are addressed.
The market was declared dead several years ago, but the government of Costa Rica has been keeping it alive artificially at the expense of taxpayers purses.
Editorial
Radiographic Costarricense (RACSA), is a subsidiary of the state-owned Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE), the major player in the telecommunications industry in Costa Rica, even after the market opened in 2010. The ICE is, in turn, a direct competitor of RACSA, which in recent years has accumulated tens of millions of dollars in losses, while at the same time losing the market share it once had. 2014 losses were estimated at $5 million.
The Superintendency of Telecommunications in Costa Rica is putting out to tender the service to provide access to Fixed Voice and Broadband Internet Services in the south of the country.
While operators claim for effective competition on the market, the Telecommunications Authority has become a thorn in the side of the telcoms companies.
In the steps undertaken by Holst Van Patten S. A. for the acquisition of satellite internet services, the Telecommunications Superintendency (Sutel) asked the company to request an authorization for a merger and then retracted it clarifying that it would not go ahead. Currently it is asking for an application for frequency allocation.
Operators of the telecommunications market in Costa Rica are calling for intervention by the regulator in rates to be removed and for operations to be carried out within a framework of real commercial freedom.
After more than six years of having promoted laws which opened up the telecommunications market in Costa Rica, no operator has the ability to unilaterally set final prices or manipulate conditions in the telecommunications market.
On October 30th and 31st companies from the sector will gather together in San Jose to discuss issues such as internet governance, mobility and telecom investment.
Businesses have denounced the arbitrariness with which municipalities are establishing rates and conditions for granting permits for setting up telecommunication towers.
With resources from the National Telecommunications Fund the infrastructure required to provide services in the north of the country will be built.
The municipalities of San Carlos, Los Chiles, Guatuso and Upala have signed an agreement to expedite the process needed to be completed by the telecommunications companies Claro and Movistar in order to install base stations and to provide Internet service in the area.
Details from a report given to the Securities and Exchange Commission on the company's activities in the six Central American countries during the first quarter of 2014.
Operating revenues in Central America (Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama) during the first three months of 2014 increased by 12.1% compared to the first three months of 2013. Adjusted operating revenue by 7.6%. This increase was mainly driven by the increase in wireless data, broadband and pay-TV services, offset by decreases in VOIP services.
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