Summary
Guatemala-Telecoms, Mobile and Broadband
Guatemala is the largest telecom market in Central America, but has been held back by poverty, crime, and corruption. Guatemala's social development indicators, such as infant mortality and illiteracy, are among the worst in Latin America.
Guatemala's fixed-line teledensity is about 19% lower than average for Central America, which is no worse than could be expected given the country's extremely low economic indicators. Mobile penetration, on the other hand, is about 7% higher than the regional average.
Fixed-line telephony has been functioning in a competitive environment for many years, with several operators offering local and international telecom services. América Móvil's Telgua is the leading fixed-line operator, with a market share of around 56%.
The leading broadband providers are Telgua and Telefónica. Broadband competition has been growing, with several new carriers entering the market. As a result, broadband prices have been falling dramatically.
Competition in the mobile market is intense, with four operators offering services. The market leader is Millicom's Tigo, followed by America Movil's Claro.
Key Highlights
VoIP is completely deregulated, whether it is PC-to-PC communication or computer-to-phone link over the Internet. As a result, VoIP had reached widespread acceptance in Guatemala. For more information, see Guatemala-Telecoms, Mobile and Broadband, chapter 7.3.1.
Digicel plans to launch mobile services in Guatemala in 2009, to become the country's fifth mobile operator. For more information, see Guatemala-Telecoms, Mobile and Broadband, chapter 11.1.
Both Claro and Tigo have launched 3G mobile services based on WCDMA technology. For more information, see Guatemala-Telecoms, Mobile and Broadband, chapter 11.2.1.
