Rumors about a possible initial public offering of Spain-based Telefónica's Latin American business are back. According to reports, Telefónica is looking to float the Latin American units on the New York Stock Exchange. When contacted by RCR Wireless News, Telefónica's public relations representatives said there has been...
In the beginning of November, Brazil's telecommunications regulator Anatel — the Agência Nacional de Telecomunicações (National Agency of Telecommunications) — established new regulations for companies that provide broadband connections. The new measures are meant to regulate service quality, with the goal to maintain at...
Editor’s Note: Welcome to our weekly Reality Check column. We’ve gathered a group of visionaries and veterans in the mobile industry to give their insights into the marketplace.
As 2012 comes to a close, and even with all the projects and final daily activities to be completed, it...
América Móvil's Brazilian wireless unit, Claro, and Brazil-based Bradesco, one of the largest banks in Latin America, announced plans launch two mobile payment services in 2013. The solutions result from a joint venture the companies formed last year, named MPO (Mobile Payment Operator). Both products —...
Aiming to evolve telecommunication services in Brazil, minister of communications Paulo Bernardo, told members of the press that some important measures might be taken in upcoming months, such as voting on antenna regulation, certifying femtocells and auctioning 700 MHz spectrum bands.
Be sure to follow...
Ericsson is aiming to have more than 50% of the LTE market in Latin America by volume. The vendor recently won several contracts for new networks, and has signed LTE/EPC contracts with Claro, Oi, TIM and Telefónica's Vivo in Brazil; UNE in Colombia; Telcel in...
The doubling of mobile data use led to an increase of .5 percentage points in the GDP per-capita growth rate in 14 countries, according to a report from the GSMA and Deloitte. The report found that countries that had a higher level of data...
Editor’s Note: Welcome to our weekly feature, Analyst Angle. We’ve collected a group of the industry’s leading analysts to give their outlook on the hot topics in the wireless industry.
More than 200 years ago, Edmund Burke said one of the most over-quoted sentences in history:...
The broadband satellite network and service provider Hughes Network Systems won a U.S.$24 million contract with the Mexican Ministry of Communications and Transport (SCT). Under the contract terms, the company will supply and build an 11,000-site broadband satellite network, spanning the entire country and...
Editor’s Note: Welcome to our weekly Reality Check column. We’ve gathered a group of visionaries and veterans in the mobile industry to give their insights into the marketplace.
From existing data, extract new business insights that can be monitored in real time—This is the premise of all business...
NII Holdings, which operates under the Nextel brand across Latin America, dismissed the president of its Brazilian operations, Sergio Borges Chaia. The company noted that NII's COO Gokul Hemmady, current Nextel Brazil COO Claudio Hidalgo and the "local leadership team" will oversee the unit's...
This year marked a milestone for the Chilean wireless telecom market with the arrival of new operators and increased competition. The new operators, including Virgin Mobile, VTR Móvil, Nextel, GTD Móvil and Netline, added 200,000 subscribers between April and September according to numbers compiled by...
TIM Brasil is facing yet another difficulty. The Brazilian telecom regulator, Anatel, has suspended sales of TIM’s “Infinity Day” plan, a new promotion that offers unlimited local calls for U.S.$0.24 (R$0.50) per day. Anatel cited potential instability in the mobile service support network as well...
Brazilian carrier Oi posted positive results for its third quarter period. The company reported that its revenues have grown as well as its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, EBITDA margin and net earnings compared to the previous quarter. However, over the same...
Apple announced that it will open its first store in Brazil’s Rio de Janeiro. It will also be the first Apple store in the Latin American region, where up until now, the company only had agreements with local retailers, such as A2U, iPlace and...
Kony Solutions, a mobile and multi-channel application platform provider, held a press conference on Tuesday to announce its commercial launch in São Paulo. Along with opening its Brazilian office, the company announced that it already has a big client: Brazilian Banco Itau Unibanco, one...
Spectrum auctions for next generation mobile services have two different strategic implications for our region. First, in developing markets such as Latin America, mobile broadband is a crucial, cost-effective opportunity to increase broadband penetration, fulfill local governments' goals of digital inclusion and bring digital...
Seven telecom operators have joined together to ask the Colombian government to make the wireless market more competitive. Avantel, Azteca, DirecTV, ETB, Movistar, Une and Tigo released a joint statement complaining of competition problems in the country. "If it stays like it is, a...
Editor’s Note: Welcome to our weekly Reality Check column. We’ve gathered a group of visionaries and veterans in the mobile industry to give their insights into the marketplace.
Capgemini and HP recently published their fourth annual World Quality Report that provides a “comprehensive assessment of the current state...
The Chilean retail company Falabella is set to launch mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) services using the network infrastructure of Chilean mobile operator Entel. Named Falabella Móvil, the MVNO will focus on Falabella's existing customers, offering customized solutions and quick access to Falabella stores.
Be...
Colombia is becoming a very interesting country for investors. With the Vive Digital plan, the government is looking to boost Internet penetration in Colombia to decrease poverty, generate jobs and improve and increase competitiveness and productivity. As a result, the country is proving attractive for...
Vivo, the Brazilian unit of the Spanish group Telefónica, announced its machine-to-machine strategy for the local market, aiming to double its accesses from 1 million to 2 million connections by the end of next year. Vivo's offers are in line with Telefónica's cloud-based global...
Claro Chile said it has conducted trials using LTE technology with the goal of launching services during the first quarter of 2013. According to the rules set by Chilean telecom regulator Subtel, telecom operators have 12 months starting from July this year when LTE...
NII Holdings, which recently announced plans to cut 20% of its workforce at its Reston, Va., headquarters, posted a 44% decrease in its consolidated operating income before depreciation and amortization to $218 million for the third quarter of 2012. The company, which operates under...
