2017 Colombia - Telecoms, Mobile, Broadband and Digital Media - Statistics and Analyses

Colombian government preps telcos for planned multi-spectrum auction

Colombia’s telecom infrastructure is reasonably well developed though service availability is relatively poor in small urban centres and rural areas. The government has endeavoured to address this with a number of public programs, and has facilitated the entry of operators to the mobile market in a bid to improve competition and extend the availability of mobile broadband services nationally.

There are about two-dozen local telephony providers, many of which had started as private companies but later became public concerns owned by their respective municipalities. The number of lines in service continues to fall steadily, with customers abandoning traditional phones in favour of mobile voice services. As in other Latin American countries, most of the existing fixed telephone lines are concentrated in the larger cities, leaving the rest of the population under-serviced.

Colombia’s broadband penetration is relatively high for the region, though growth in the sector has been hampered by poor fixed-line infrastructure in many of the country’s 32 departments. The government has launched several initiatives to increase broadband take-up, and has in place the National ICT Plan 2008-2019 aimed at encouraging the use of ICTs and of internet services as a vehicle for economic growth. The Live Digital for the People 2014-2018 program is concentrated on promoting the use of ICT in sectors including agriculture, education, health and tourism, and also involves projects that subsidise internet access for schools, low-income households, and rural areas. The Computers for Schooling program by early 2017 had distributed more than 1.6 million computers. These efforts have had considerable success, leading to far higher growth in the number of broadband subscriptions among the lower socio-economic groups in recent years.

Cable broadband commands just over half of the fixed-line broadband market by subscribers, with DSL having a declining share and with fibre-based broadband developing strongly. Although most fibre infrastructure is concentrated in high-density urban areas growth in fibre broadband connections has far outpaced the other platforms in recent years, and the developing footprint of fibre networks is increasingly leading to the migration of DSL subscribers.

Growth in Colombia’s mobile market has slowed in recent years though it retains significant potential, particularly in the mobile broadband sector where penetration is still low and where strong demand exists in rural areas where fixed-line infrastructure remains poor. The market has seen considerable competition from the MVNO sector, with Virgin Mobile alone having almost 2.6 million subscribers as of mid-2017.

The regulator and government in early 2017 made progress on their plan to auction spectrum in the 700MHz and 1900MHz bands, aimed at improving LTE services across the country.

This report provides an overview of Colombia’s telecom infrastructure and regulatory environment, together with profiles of the major fixed-line operators and a range of market statistics and analyses. It also provides insights into the mobile market, including key market statistics and analyses as well as profiles of the major mobile operators and scenario forecasts to 2022. In addition the report covers the broadband and pay TV markets, accompanied by relevant statistics, analyses, and broadband scenario forecasts to 2022.

Key developments:

• Court ruling halts Bogotá city’s plans to sell its 86.5% stake in ETB;
• Regulator launches phase two of its Digital Connections Project extending broadband to underserved areas;
• Government investing COP200 billion in national Wi-Fi network to 2018;
• Azteca Comunicaciones finishes fibre network rollout;
• COP1.2 trillion to be invested in National Fibre Optic Project;
• ETB expands its fibre service, intending to cover one million premises by end-2018;
• Tigo Colombia sells 1,200 mobile towers to ATC;
• Claro fined COP3.16 trillion and Movistar fined COP1.65 trillion for failing to meet certain licence conditions;
• MinTIC calls for expressions of interest in the planned auction of spectrum in the 700MHz and 1900MHz bands;
• Claro extends LTE coverage to 425 municipalities;
• Report includes telcos’ operating updates, ANTV data to June 2017, regulator’s market data to March 2017, telco’s operating data to Q2 2017, recent market developments.

Companies mentioned in this report:

Movistar/Telefónica, Claro (Telmex/Comcel), UNE-EPM, Emcali, Tigo Colombia, Avantel, Empresa de Telecomunicaciones de Santa Fe de Bogotá (ETB), Telebucaramanga, Telefónica de Pereira, Edatel, BT Colombia, Calipso, Caucatel, Colomsat, Synapsis, DirecTV, Global TV, Uff! Móvil, Metrotel, Virgin Mobile, Móvil Éxito, Globalstar