LatAm Wrap-Up: Mexican consortium wins Peru fiber optic bid; Colombian Vive Digital update

A consortium made up of Mexican broadcaster TV Azteca and Tendai won a bid to install and operate a fiber optic network covering nearly 80% of Peru. The National Fiber Optic Backbone grant consists of the design, deployment and operation of a 13,000-kilometer fiber optic network that will connect Lima with 22 regional capitals and 180 provincial capitals. The investment amount is estimated at $323 million,

Peru’s minister of transport and communications, Carlos Paredes, said that the National Fiber Optic Backbone complements the LTE bands awarded by Proinversion in July in terms of the quality and quantity of high-speed data that can be transmitted. He also stressed that once the backbone is deployed, Internet home access costs will be reduced by up to 80%, improving the quality of life of all Peruvians.

Vive Digital: The Colombian government released some results of its digital plan, Vive Digital. Broadband accesses reached 7.6 million connections in September, and 777 municipalities have fiber optic Internet access, surpassing the goal of 700. Internet penetration has increased from 17% in 2010 to 33% this year. Currently, Colombia counts three 3G carriers and six carriers are providing LTE services.

Brazilian telecom survey: In Brazil, smartphone and tablet Internet use grew more than five-times (438%) since 2010, according to a survey by the Brazilian Telecommunications Association (Telebrasil). Broadband as a whole, including fixed connections, more than tripled in the last three years with 89 million accesses. By October 2013, broadband access totaled 122 million connections, a ratio of 64 connections for every 100 inhabitants.

Fiber expansion: Digicel acquired submarine fiber assets across the Caribbean region. The company reached an agreement with the Guadeloupe-based Loret Group and Caribbean Fibre Holdings to acquire the asset. Financial terms of the contract were not disclosed, and the transaction is subject to regulatory approval.

In total, Digicel has secured access to a network of 15 submarine segments with a reach of approximately 3,100 kilometers across the Caribbean region. Digicel also has extensive capacity on other submarine networks connecting locations such as Miami, Paris and New York.

IPTV: Latin America and the Middle East and African region are the smallest IPTV markets globally with an estimated combined 2.3% of global IPTV subscriptions at the end of 2013, or 901,000 and 1,432,000 subscriptions respectively, according to Pyramid Research. These regions will also be the fastest growing with IPTV revenue in Latin America growing at a compound annual growth rate of 56.1%, far ahead of the growth rates of other regions. The expected growth is due to a projected rapid uptake of broadband services, including IPTV, in a region that previously had a low penetration rate, according to Pyramid. The IPTV revenue for the Middle East and Africa will grow at the second fastest CAGR behind Latin America at 22.1% between 2013 and 2018.

More news from the Latin American region:

• Telefónica Mexico will focus on LTE deployment in 2014. The operator plans to increase its LTE subscriber base by 25% in 2014. Movistar started the deployment of its LTE network in Mexico at the end of September 2012. 
• Cisco started manufacturing Wi-Fi access points and switches in Brazil. The 1600 and 2600 Access Point families join the lines of switches and routers, which have been local manufactured since September 2012. 
• IUSA and EnVerv announced their collaboration on a number of projects for advanced metering infrastructure, revenue protection, prepaid metering and solar applications. EnVerv’s EV8000 Power-Line Communications modem system-on-chip constitutes the communication engine of these applications.
• Brazilian telecom operator Oi reached 500,000 Wi-Fi hotspots, which is a growth of 1,763% compared to the 27,000 hotspots registered at the end of 2012.
• Peru’s Osiptel defined rules for fixed and mobile number portability. According to the new rules, mobile telephony users will be able to have their lines ported in just one day.
• Cable & Wireless Communications upgraded its mobile data network in Panama City and Colon as the first part of a $47.5 million program to meet growing demand for data-based services.