The percentage of the population with Internet access in Central America increased 17% between 2016 and 2018, increasing from 44% to 61%.
Data from the report "Internet in Central America 2018", compiled by the Commercial Trade Area of CentralAmericaData:
Currently, Costa Rica is the Central American country with the highest proportion of households with Internet access, with 77% of the total, followed by Panama with 67% and Honduras with 31%.
The company Tigo has announced that it plans to invest $20 million in the installation of a TIER III data center in the Olocuilta free zone.
George Farkass, vice president of Tigo Business, explained to Laprensagrafica.com that "... The TIER III offers nine levels of reliability, and business continuity regardless of whether any natural disaster happens. It will be for any corporate client, not only for Tigo, and we will be the first to build it, we are not remodeling it, we are building it from scratch."
Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad is evaluating the Salvadoran market to determine if there is an opportunity to establish itself as a new broadband operator.
The state telecommunications company already has a presence in Nicaragua, where in conjunction with the state company Enatrel, it operates the company Telecomunica, which provides internet and television services.
If the proposal put forward by the Superintendence of Telecommunications is successful, the rates for telephony and mobile internet will be free of regulation.
The proposal to declare effective competition in the mobile phone market will put to public consultation for the next 15 days.
Over the next two years, Cable & Wireless plans to invest $220 million in strengthening infrastructure for mobile telephony and switching over from copper to fiber optics.
The announcement was made by the president of Liberty Global, owner of Cable & Wireless since 2016.
"...Mike Fries said in a press conference that the new investment will be made to reinforce the infrastructure of mobile telephony, switch from fixed copper to fiber optic networks, boost services for companies and for the government."
In Costa Rica a tender is being launched for the implementation of 100 MB of wireless internet access in parks, plazas, train stations and other public spaces.
$45 million will be invested in the project, and the aim is to connect 985 wireless access points in 360 districts of the country's 82 cantons, including 62 public libraries, 28 train stations and 7 civic centers for peace.The delivery of offers is scheduled for November 2017.Seedetails of the tender.
A plan is being worked on in Costa Rica to implement a broadband internet network for 2,500 educational centers in different areas of the country.
The proposal which is being worked on by the government and Fonatel is in the planning stage, and aims to develop a broadband internet network with different speeds and capacities, which would be defined according to the number of users in each educational center.
For the third time the date for submitting bids in the 70 MHz tender for the radio spectrum for international mobile technology services has been postponed.
For the third time, the deadline has been changed for submitting the proposals, after the operators interested in thetender filed appeals and objections against the tender conditions.
"The regulation exercised by the Siget in the retail mobile market discourages investment in infrastructure and the acquisition of larger portions of the spectrum."
Without the regulation of retail prices, the Salvadoran mobile phone market would have incentives for investments with social and economically desirable ends, concludes the study entitled "Analysis of the regulation of retail prices of mobile telephony in El Salvador",prepared by the Center for Studies on Telecommunications in Latin America.
The state run electricity company ICE and Claro have obtained contracts to build infrastructure to provide internet and mobile telephony services in 620 communities in the province of Limon.
From a statement issued by the Sutel:
January 5, 2017.The National Telecommunications Fund (FONATEL) through Banco Nacional, as administrator of the Trust, signed contracts with Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE) and Claro to bring internet telephony to 620 vulnerable communities in the districts of Siquirres, Pococi, Guácimo, Matina, Limón and Talamanca.
Of the 752,952 customers who in the past five years migrated from one provider to another in search of better quality and service, 94% correspond to mobile phones.
From a statement issued by the National Public Services Authority:
Five years after the implementation of Number Portability in Panama, figures show that to date 752,952 customers have migrated from one provider to another looking for a better quality of service and the best deals.
Five years after the market opened up, three municipalities continue to prioritize landscape aesthetics versus the need to install structures to ensure cell phone coverage.
Two court cases motivated by the governments of the municipalities of Esparza and Moravia, and the filing an appeal with the Sala I by the Municipality of Curridabat, summarize the legal objections raised because of the installation of towers for the provision of cell phone services in Costa Rica, and which continue to generate controversy five years after the opening of the telecommunications sector, according to an article by Nacion.com.
With funding from South Korea and the IDB, plans have been made to install 3,500 kilometers of fiber optics in the next two years, with an estimated $100 million investment.
Telcor's general manager, Orlando Castillo, explained that the process of implementing the network of 3500 kilometers of fiber optics will take all of 2017 to complete, and it is expected it will be finished and ready to start operating in early 2018.