Venezuela - Fixed-Line Market and Infrastructure - Background Report

Synopsis

In 2007/2008, Venezuela’s fixed-lines in service grew at a faster rate than those of most other Latin American countries, as its renationalised incumbent CANTV rolled out lines in under-serviced areas while cutting interconnection charges and call fees. Besides CANTV, another four telcos offer basic telephony services: Movistar and Digitel use fixed-wireless technology, while Inter and NetUno provide the service over their cable TV networks. A Venezuelan satellite, Simon Bolivar-1, has been in operation since January 2009, but is reportedly under-utilised. VoIP, as a cheap option for long-distance calling, has gained a strong foothold in Venezuela. This report provides background information for the more regularly updated Venezuela - Fixed-Line Market and Infrastructure - Overview, Statistics and Forecasts. As such, it covers details on the history and development of Venezuela’s fixed-line market and telecom infrastructure that are absent from the more up-to-date report, but it does not contain forecasts or statistics.