Understand the Connection Between Independent Tower Companies and the Improvement in Mobile Telecommunications Performance in Latin America

The development of the Latin American wireless industry over the past two decades has seen significant progress in 3G and 4G coverage and improved service quality. However, there are still substantial challenges in terms of coverage gaps in rural areas, limited affordability for low-income users, and capital investment lag compared to OECD countries.

The independent tower industry in #LatinAmerica is significant and well-developed when compared to other regions, with 191,330 tower sites deployed in the twelve largest countries and an increasing share of independent companies and MNO-owned companies.

The following white paper, led by Raul Katz, Director of Business Strategy Research in the Columbia Institute for Tele-Information at the Columbia Business School and President of Telecom Advisory Services, LLC, found that countries with a higher share of independent tower companies have better wireless performance metrics, including:

• Improved 4G coverage (97% of the population vs. 90%)
• Faster wireless broadband (12% faster)
• Higher capital spending (USD 21 per capita vs. USD 16 per capita)
• Lower costs in wireless broadband services (1/3 of costs in terms of per capita income)
• Higher broadband adoption (65% vs. 58%)
• Increased wireless competition

The study concluded that governments and regulators in Latin American countries should support the development and sustainability of the independent tower industry by implementing several policy and regulatory initiatives. These initiatives aim to provide public right-of-way access at market rates, deliver faster permit approvals, prevent unnecessary duplicity of site deployment, establish a cap on fees and taxes, promote the shared use of infrastructure for #4G and #5G deployment, avoid price regulation of tower company contracts, and provide long-term guarantees in regulations and permits.

We invite you to download and read this white paper developed by Raúl Katz and learn more about the role of the tower industry in advancing meaningful connectivity in the region: “Latin American Telecommunications at the Crossroads of Passive Infrastructure Sharing.”

#YourSignalStartsHere #BuildingBetterWireless #EssentialInfrastructure