QCOSTARICA – The coverage of fiber optic networks used to bring broadband Internet to Costa Rican homes and businesses increased 146% in one year, making it more possible to acquire a connection of this type.
During this period, it went from 78,417 to 192,996 kilometers of fiber optic networks throughout the country, revealed a comparative analysis of the Costa Rican Telecommunications market, carried out by the Superintendency that regulates this market.
“Internet service users have demanded higher quality in telecommunications services, as a result of the conditions caused by the pandemic, and telecommunications companies have responded by expanding their fiber-optic networks. This allows better bandwidths and stability,” explained Federico Chacón, president of the Council of the Superintendencia de Telecomunicaciones (Sutel).
The growth of the network goes hand in hand with the increase in Internet service subscriptions through fiber optics, which grew by 63% in the last year, according to Sutel data.
From the state operator ICE (operating under the Kölbi brand), Claro and new telcos such as Fibraencasa and Metrocom have become benchmarks for this technology that endangers coaxial cable connections, a technology that is older and less stable than fiber optics.
However, the country still faces the challenge of matching the supply of services in urban areas with rural areas, to expand opportunities.
This work has been developed with resources from the Fondo Nacional de Telecomunicaciones (Fonatel) – National Telecommunications Fund – which has enabled the construction of 2,175 kilometers of fiber optic networks to connect 513 parks and squares throughout the country, which today have free Wi-Fi Internet networks.
Internet subscriptions higher than a download speed of 10 Megabytes (in all technologies) have gone from 9% to 54% in the last two years, as a result of the greater demand and supply of this service in the population.