BUENOS AIRES, Argentina—Colombia and Ecuador took several measures to accelerate the personal communications services (PCS) licenses auction that they plan to hold in the third quarter of 2002. Colombia’s Ministry of Communications rejected the complaint appeal presented by BellSouth in October 2001, while Ecuador selected the Peruvian financial entity Latin Pacific to evaluate the number of licenses to be auctioned, determine their costs and organize the auction.
The major conflict in both countries—which is delaying the process—is that the current operators cannot participate in the auctions. Larry Smith, president of BellSouth in Colombia, said the auctions favor new companies because “they (the newcomers) will have 20 percent more spectrum than us, which allows them to offer a larger capacity for voice and data services.”
In Colombia, the largest operator is Comcel, owned by Mexican company Am
