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Research Solutions - The Americas

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Nicaragua - Telecoms, Mobile and Broadband
Executive summary Nicaragua is the largest country in Central America, but one of the least densely populated. It has the subregion's lowest GDP per capita. About 62% of the population live below the poverty line. Like its economic indicators, Nicaragua's fixed-line teledensity and mobile penetration are also the lowest in Central America. The broadband market is still embryonic, with less than 1% penetration. Most Internet users are concentrated in the largest cities because the rural and marginal areas lack access to the most basic telecom infrastructure. A number of Internet cafés provide public access to Internet and email services, but these are also restricted to the larger population centres. América Móvil's Claro has a clear leadership in all of Nicaragua's telecom sectors, including fixed-line, mobile, broadband, and pay TV. Telefónica's Movistar is the only company competing with Claro in the fixed-line and mobile market. In the mobile sector, Movistar holds almost one third of the market, but in the fixed-line sector, it has only about 11% of the country's fixed lines in service. Due to a weak regulatory structure and bureaucratic delays, further liberalisation is slow to be implemented. The duopoly situation has dampened the competitive drive; therefore, there has been less effort than in neighbouring countries to improve quality and lower prices. Some competition is expected in the fixed-line and broadband market from mid-2010, when a new company, Yota de Nicaragua, is due to launch WiMAX services. The telecom market outlook for 2010 is uninspiring; the fixed-line market will probably continue to decline, while mobile market growth decelerates. The fastest growing sector in 2010 will undoubtedly be broadband, both fixed and mobile, as the country's penetration levels are extremely low and demand is rising. The longer-term prospect is more promising. GDP per capita should eventually increase, and with telecom indicators being so low, there is enormous growth potential for the future, provided the country can free itself from its legacy of violence and corruption. A priority for the government is to develop a universal service plan for economically depressed rural localities, and to bring Internet access to all state schools. Key highlights: Yota de Nicaragua, controlled by Russia's WiMAX Holding Ltd, rolled out a WiMAX network in the fourth quarter of 2009, with initial coverage over the capital city of Managua. Yota intends to expand the WiMAX infrastructure gradually to other regions of Nicaragua. VoIP is open to full competition and there are several companies offering services. América Móvil unified all services in Nicaragua (including fixed line, mobile, Internet, and cable TV) under the Claro brand in May 2009, when the Enitel name was discontinued. Claro has a near-monopoly over broadband in Nicaragua since acquiring cable TV company Estesa, which was the only company that offered any meaningful competition. Claro's ADSL and cable modem services are both branded Turbonett Fijo. The cable modem service uses the Hybrid Fibre Coaxial (HFC) network inherited from Estesa.Nicaragua - key telecom parameters - 2008 - 2009 Category20082009 (e) Fixed-line service Total number of subscribers252,000249,000 Annual growth1.2%-1.2% Teledensity4.4%4.3% Internet Internet users185,000198,000 Annual growth9%7% Internet users penetration3.3%3.4% Broadband Total number of subscribers36,00044,000 Annual growth29%22% Penetration rate0.6%0.8% Mobile telephony subscribers Total number of subscribers (million)2.933.10 Annual growth19%6% Mobile penetration rate51.7%53.9% (Source: BuddeComm) Nicaragua has good long-term growth potential especially in mobile and broadband services. The report covers trends and developments in the fixed-line, mobile, Internet, broadband, and pay TV markets. Subjects include: Market and industry analyses, trends and developments; Facts, figures, and statistics; Government policies and regulatory issues; Major players (fixed, mobile and broadband); Infrastructure development; Internet and broadband market (DSL, cable modem, wireless); Mobile market (including 3G and mobile broadband).
Last Update: 9 Apr 2010   Number of Pages: 24

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