Last updated: 11 Sep 2013 Update History
Report Status: Archived
Report Pages: 59
Analyst: Lucia Bibolini
Publication Overview
Peru is one of the most promising telecom markets in Latin America, with strong growth predicted for the coming years. This annual report provides a comprehensive overview of trends and developments in Peru’s fixed-line, mobile, broadband, and pay-TV sectors. Subjects include:
Key developments:
The Telecommunications Investment Fund FITEL provides subsidies for telecom services in rural areas and other places that are marginal to private providers; to increase competition, the telecom regulator Osiptel has cut certain interconnection fees by 68%, with rural operators being charged the lower rate; Movistar’s fixed-line subscriber base has been shrinking, while Claro has been posting double-digit growth rates; Viettel has pledged to invest US$324 million in infrastructure and set-up costs to roll out mobile services; the government's national broadband plan aims to provide internet connectivity via a fibre-optic backbone to the more remote regions of Peru; text messaging in Peru is undeveloped compared with other Latin American countries; more than half of Peru’s internet users access the internet through privately owned telecentres known as cabinas públicas; cable broadband is poorly developed in Peru, with only about 2% household penetration, but the number of subscribers is growing annually at double-digit rates.
Companies covered in this report include:
Telefónica del Perú (trading as Movistar), América Móvil Perú (trading as Claro), Nextel del Perú, Americatel Perú, Viettel Peru, Virgin Mobile, Gamacon, IDT, Convergia, Gilat To Home Perú, Rural Telecom, Valtron, Terra Perú, EMax, Yota del Perú (trading as Olo), VelaTel Peru (formerly Perusat), Star Global Com, Best Cable Peru, DirecTV.
Researcher:- Lucia Bibolini
Current publication date:- September 2013 (12th Edition)
Executive Summary
BuddeComm’s yearly update of Peru - Telecoms, Mobile, Broadband, and Forecasts provides a comprehensive overview of the trends and developments in the telecommunications market of Peru, including the regulator’s market data for the first quarter of 2013, mobile operator data to mid-2013, other industry data, and expected market developments in the coming years.
Economic conditions
Peru’s economic expansion has made it a star performer in Latin America, but GDP per capita is still far lower than the regional average. Telecom penetration reflects the country’s poverty map. Fixed-line and mobile subscribers are highly concentrated in urban areas – particularly the capital city. Besides poverty, another challenge for Peru is the rugged topography of the Andean mountains and Amazon jungles.
Investment opportunities
Peru’s single concession regime allows for the provision of all telecom services, including fixed-line, mobile, pay TV, and internet. The government favours foreign investment and follows pro-business, pro-growth policies. With GDP expected to expand 6% annually over the next several years, Peru’s telecom sector is a promising arena for investors.
Fixed line market
Peru’s fixed-line teledensity is the third lowest in South America after Bolivia and Paraguay. Obstacles to fixed-line growth include widespread poverty, fixed-to-mobile substitution, expensive telephone services, and geographical inaccessibility in the rugged Andean mountains and lowland Amazon jungles. Trading as Movistar, Telefónica del Perú (TdP) dominates the basic telephone market. América Móvil’s Claro occupies a distant second place, and Americatel is third with only about 1% of the market.
Mobile market
Although Peru’s mobile penetration is below the regional average, it measures up favourably with the country’s GDP per capita, which is comparatively lower. Nevertheless, the country’s penetration data hides the fact that about one quarter of the population has no mobile phone at all, while many Peruvians – especially urban dwellers – have multiple mobile subscriptions.
Mobile operators
Three companies compete in the mobile market: TdP’s Movistar is the leader, América Móvil’s Claro is in second place; and third is Nextel Perú. Vietnam’s Viettel is due to become Peru’s fourth mobile network operator, with service launch expected in the second half of 2013, while Virgin Mobile plans to enter the market as a Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO).
Mobile broadband and 3G
Due to the country’s low fixed broadband penetration, 3G services are likely to boom in the coming years. With the expansion of UMTS networks and the declining price of laptops and smartphones, we expect mobile broadband and 3G phone-based internet browsing to escalate.
Broadband market
Fixed broadband subscriber penetration in Peru is considerably lower than average for Latin America. In a country where internet user penetration used to be remarkably high in the days of dial-up, the poor development of fixed broadband may seem surprising. Reasons for the shortcoming are several. Besides the obvious barriers – such as poverty, limited levels of literacy, low computer penetration, and rugged topography – perhaps the biggest problems is the lack of competition, which has made broadband in Peru one of the slowest and most expensive in the region. However, the government's national broadband plan, enacted into law in July 2012, is expected to drive strong market growth in the coming years.
Peru’s fixed-line, broadband, and mobile statistics – 2011 - 2013
Sector |
2011 |
2012 |
2013 (e) |
Fixed-lines in service |
|||
Teledensity per capita |
9.8% |
10.2% |
10.2% |
Broadband |
|||
Penetration per capita |
4.0% |
4.7% |
5.3% |
Mobile telephony subscribers |
|||
Penetration per capita |
89.1% |
98.1% |
99.5% |
(Source: BuddeComm based on industry data)
Market Highlights
This report is essential reading for those needing high-level strategic information and objective analysis on the telecom sector in Peru. It provides further information on:
Data in this report is the latest available at the time of preparation and may not be for the current year.
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