Full cable and copies of the draft regulations available. With only 3.3 million people, Uruguay boasts one of the most advanced telecommunications markets in Latin America. Its teledensity, or main lines per 100 people, was 28 in 1999, up 44 percent from 19.5 in 1995. In 1997, Uruguay was the first country in Latin America, the sixth in the world, to become fully digital. Every town with a population of over 10,000 is connected to its national fiber-optic backbone network.
Limited competition exists for wireless and value-added services.
This effort was defeated in a public referendum. Renewed efforts to open the telecom sector to greater participation from private firms are presently under consideration in the Uruguayan legislative branch. Although he mentioned that there will be three operators in each region, he did not offer details since they are in the process of drawing up the rules. Perez Tabo also noted that the Government of Uruguay is considering auctions for trunked radio services in the 800 MHz range and data transmission services in the 3.5 GHz band. The visiting officials reminded U.S. companies that telecommunications liberalization and investment promotion in the IT sector are part of a larger macroeconomic policy, or, part of the Battle Administration's vision for the future of Uruguay.