With little fanfare, NII Holdings’ Brazilian operations, Nextel Brazil, has started to offer 3G data plans in a handful of markets across the country. The carrier has started to sell modem data plan based on its 3G networks with the goal to add voice services by the beginning of next year.
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The launch has so far not been accompanied by any press announcement, however Nextel posted in its website that the 4 gigabyte data plan will cost R$79.90 per month (or about $39) and the modem will cost R$24.90 ($12) with a contract plan. Without discount the modem will cost R$150 ($72).
Nextel is looking at adding voice options early next year when it expects to make major announcements.
Nextel’s 3G launch in Brazil has been expected for some time. The company has already launched 3G services in Mexico, Peru and Chile. The launch in Latin America’s biggest market, Brazil, was expected to happen before December this year.
Earlier this year financial analysts noted that Nextel’s 3G plans could cause the carrier to become lost in a sea of rival 3G operators that have already launched commercial services. Nextel’s unique push-to-talk service running across its legacy iDEN network could also suffer as it is already struggling from a lack of compelling devices geared toward an increasingly smartphone-savvy public.
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