Chile Market Research

BMI has released reports which show that Chile will be going through a period of decline in the next 5 years, though the estimate period of 2010-2014. All mobile operators showed an increase in 2008 in ARPU but there was a decli... view more

Chile Market Research

BMI has released reports which show that Chile will be going through a period of decline in the next 5 years, though the estimate period of 2010-2014. All mobile operators showed an increase in 2008 in ARPU but there was a decline in 2009, which is being expected to repeat itself over the next few years. But the decline in the Chilean market will be less than that of the other markets in the Latin American region because there is more dependence on mobile data services and mobile broadband rather than voice services. BMI expects that there is going to be an increase in the proportion of mobile data services as part of operators’ revenue. This will reduce the pressure on low cost subscribers who are entering the market. The research shows us that there has been an increase in the number of mobile subscribers in the first part of 2010. There are myriad reasons for this but the primary of them is the earthquake which hit Chile earlier. The increase in subscribers may be due to the fact that after the earthquake, more and more people wanted to contact their friends and family. The mobile operators also did their part by offering free messages and pushing back the dates for payment of bills, so as to reduce the pressure on their subscribers. All this and the fact that the lines were back being functional within a few days show the developed market for telecommunications in Chile. The regulator Subtel and all the operators provided respite for the subscribers by allowing them reduced call rates as well. One of the operators, Telefónica de Chile has also promised to usher in fiber-optic cabling in the regions which were worst hit by the earth-quake. This would mean the introduction of the latest technology in Chile, which would help in boosting the local businesses and economies in the region.

The Chile Market research lays down the facts which proves that the mobile operators have all been very competitive and essentially, forward looking. They have offered the latest in mobile technology and this makes the sector grow at a good pace. This has also kept Chile near the top of BMI’s Business Environment Ratings. The weaknesses are few and sporadic which is eclipsed by strong Country and Industry Risk scores. The only factor which is holding back Chile from claiming the top position in the ratings is its small population. With a limited population, there are very restricted opportunities for growth. But nevertheless, Chilean mobile subscribers have made the sector one of the best in the region and sector peers emulate Chile. Further data reveals that one-third of all broadband subscribers are using mobile services for the internet. This heats up the battle for broadband services with fixed line operators under pressure because of an increasing  number of mobile broadband users.