In 1990 the state owned telecom company Entel was split in two and privatized. Telecom (French Telecom – Telecom Italia Consortium) got the monopoly in the North of the country, Telefónica (the Spanish Telefónica) got the monopoly in the South. Buenos Aires is covered by both.
The 1998 Telecommunications Liberalization Plan opened Argentina’s telecommunications to competition and foreign investment. Since the year 2000 Telecom and Telefónica are allowed to get customers in each other’s areas. Despite government efforts, the main factor on which telephone provider you choose remains the geographic region you live in. The Greater Buenos Aires is the only area where both providers appear to compete.
Argentina encourages the growth of modern telecommunication technology. Fibre-optic cables trunk lines are installed between all major cities, the major networks are digital and the availability of telephone service is being improved. Since the early 1990’s over US$ 20 billion has been invested in the Argentinean telephone system. For fixed telecommunication there were 8.9 million telephone lines in 2004. In the cellular telephone market Argentina was the fastest growing market in Latin America in 2004. In that same year there were 12.5 million cellular telephone lines.
Once you have a telephone line connection to your apartment you can decide to stay with the telephone line provider for your telephone calling plans or contract one of the many different providers. These telecom providers tend to offer both internet and telephone plans. Depending on where you live, if you telephone line provider is Telecom or Telefónica and the kind of telephone calls you prefer to make (local, regional, international), you might want to contract a telecom company other than Telecom or Telefónica. In our Business Directory you will find different telecom companies. Post a message on our Forum to find out about the experiences of others.