Systor International will be responsible for managing the porting process, which will be funded by operators of frequencies for mobile phones.
Authorities from the National Telecommunications Commission (Conatel), as well as executives from the mobile operators Tigo, Claro and Hondutel confirmed that the Norwegian company Systor International will is responsible for the operation, administration and management of the central database for the number portability process.
After reserving frequencies for the state run company Hondutel, Conatel awarded the rest of the band to Tigo and Claro, who will pay $12 million each.
Latribuna.hn reported that "The government has sold a license to operate a 4G mobile band worth $24,105,000, reserving a portion for the Honduran Telecommunications Company (Hondutel), so that it can exploit it in the future jointly with a private partner. "
The country was the only one in Central America which had no law on the subject.
Telephone companies have until next September 30 to do everything that the law requires to start operating a number portability system by October 1.
According to Deputy Thomas Zambrano, the law will benefit more than seven million users who are subscribed to three mobile companies including Tigo, Claro and Hondutel.
From the month of September recipients of remittances in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador will be able to receive them on their mobile phones.
By using a its cellular network platform, the Guatemalan company Tigo Money, a subsidiary of Tigo, will offer international services for money receipts.
Since early 2011, Tigo Money has been in the remittance business nationally in Guatemala.
Huawei announced that Millicom has selected them to develop an international long distance network in CA.
The new network will cover three countries: Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.
Huawei One Network Solution is a platform for international calls and long distance which was designed to support business models with an effective and reliable interconnectivity.
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.
Millicom International Cellular S.A today announced that Millicom and its local partner in Honduras have reached an agreement that gives Millicom full control of Celtel, its Honduran subsidiary.
Under the revised shareholders' agreement, the local partner has granted Millicom an unconditional call option for his 33% stake for the next five years. Millicom has granted a put option for the same duration to the local partner in the event of a change of control of Millicom.
TIGO Honduras will preinstall select handsets with a customized version of mobile web browser Opera Mini.
This will allow users to download the customized mobile Web browser over the air from TIGO’s WAP portal, wap.tigo.com.hn, and operamini.com. Opera Mini for TIGO Honduras will feature Spanish menus and customized bookmarks.
Opera Mini for TIGO Honduras is localized to the enhance the region’s mobile browsing experience.
The company is aiming to extend its Internet coverage to the entire country in 2010.
This was reported by Tigo Honduras' President, Antonio Tavel Otero, who added that they intend to provide this service in areas still lacking electric energy.
Elheraldo.hn published further comments by Tavel Otero: "All together, the four telecom companies in the country could invest up to $350 million next year, a figure similar to that of 2009".
Corn, coffee and vegetables growers will be able to access price information with their mobile phones, by using Agrocel.
Agrocel is short for Price Information System Via Mobile Phones, and is a project developed by Tigo, Funder (Rural Development Foundation), and Project Pymerural (a Rural SMEs initiative).
"Growers need only to text the Spanish words for coffee, vegetables or corn to the 2020 number and they will receive daily price data.
The company Tigo and Interamericana de Seguros introduced a program of medical accident insurance to the market.
Accident insurance can be bought through a text message from a mobile telephone.
Proceso Digital publishes in its web portal: "The product offers protection of 30,000 lempiras ($1,580) for medical expenses caused by an accident with no deduction for only 50 lempiras ($2.60), which can be added to your Tigo plan or recharged to your pre-paid card by sending your ID number to 4321."
A study predicts that 3G will cover 30% of the Honduran telecommunications market by 2014.
A study by Pyramid Research, published by TMCnet.com, examined the current state of the 3G sector and found it covers only 2% of the telecommunications market in Honduras in 2009 and makes a 5-year projection predicting a growth of 5%.
The article indicated that the analyst and co-author of the report, Jose Magana, said: "Mobile penetration, which ended close to 87% for 2008, will advance by 109% for 2014. Currently, 3G subscriptions represent less than 2% of the total, but Pyramid anticipates that it will be more than 30% by 2014."
With this transaction, Millicom International Cellular controls 100% of Navega.
Navega was created in 2000 by Comcel which is part of Millicom, the Spanish company Iberdrola, EDP in Portugal and Teco Energy in the US, and it provides data transport services in Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua.
Mario Zanotti, Latin America director for the company told El Periódico of Guatemala that with the purchase, “Millicom will be able to ensure the quality and availability of transmission services for its three mobile operators (Tigo in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador) and benefit its consumers. It will also meet the growing demand for Internet access and extend broadband services for Third-Generation (3.5G)."
In 2009, Digicel will invest between $150 and $200 million, Tigo between $100 and $150 million and Claro between $50 and $100 million.
Elheraldo.hn reports: "There has been a historic amount of investment in cellular phones in Honduras.
This behavior will continue in the medium term, executives from Tigo, Claro and Digicel agreed, although they preferred to speak anonymously so as not to reveal their strategies.
The Swedish firm Millicom has purchased the telecommunications company AMNET for 510 million dollars, and will acquire its 350,000 cable clients in Honduras, Costa Rica and El Salvador.
AMNET offers services of cable television, telephone and internet as a multimedia "Triple Play" package.
The company has the biggest fiber optics network in the region and is the largest cable company in El Salvador and Costa Rica.
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