Internet penetration in Ecuador is poised to reach 37.9% — nearly 5.5 million users — in December, an increase of 37% compared with 2010, when the country had 28% penetration and 3.6 million. The number of broadband Internet users has grown from 35,066 users in 2006 to nearly 5 million this year.
In a news conference Dec. 29, Ecuador’s government detailing the work of the Ministry of Telecommunication and Information Society (Mintel) during 2011.
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Broadband Internet has been provided to 300,000 new homes since October, said the National Telecommunications Corp. (CNT EP), adding that there has been 1,740% growth in the number of its broadband Internet subscribers in the past 3.9 years.
CNT EP said that it has increased its capacity for international Internet connection 15-fold and installed nearly 1,100 kilometers (about 680 miles) of fiber-optic cable across the country, an increase of 19.8% compared with 2010.
Related to mobile lines, CNT EP said that the CDMA wireless network currently comprises 72 base stations, reaching about 60,000 users in 15 provinces.
CNT EP Minister Jaime Guerrero Ruiz also presented the progress of the national connectivity plan, which has invested U.S. $24 million in the past three years. Currently, 4,860 educational institutions — 54% of which are urban and 46% rural — have connectivity. The government aims to install Internet connectivity in 2,100 educational institutions next year.
Fixed telephony penetration has risen 4.9% this year, reaching 14.9%, with 2.1 million lines, up from 2 million in 2010.
