2006 “NewMarket Scenarios in Latin America

This essay analyzes the role of the market in network expansion in Latin America. Although universal access policies have achieved some degree of success in fighting the digital divide, the issue of massive access to ICT services seems to be more directly associated with the sector’s regulatory environment and with the level of competition prevailing in the sector. This essay describes the expansion process of the major operators in Latin America – Telefónica Spain and Teléfonos Mexico – as a result of regulatory policies implemented in their countries of origin. It evaluates the sector’s performance after the reforms carried out in the region, as well as the role of mobile telephone services as the driving force in offering access to popula-tion segments that had no previous service. And, lastly, within this new market and technological context, it is suggested that there is a need to design policies that turn challenges into new opportunities to encourage network expansion towards areas without services. Thus, within this new scenario, research lines are identified to carry out regulatory policies and contribute to the enrichment of their design