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Fiber remains incipient in Brazil

The technology accounted for only 5 percent of all broadband provision in 2015
Written by Angelica Mari, Contributing Writer

Fiber optic technology still has a minimal representation in the provision of broadband access in Brazil, according to the country's telecommunications agency Anatel.

Only 5 percent of all broadband connections in the country took place through a fiber network in 2015, the agency says. DSL technology with connections between 2Mbps and 12Mbps retained 52 percent of the market, while cable accounted for 9 percent of all broadband provision.

Multimedia Communication Service (SCM) providers, companies providing fixed telecommunications services under voice, image and data packages, had a 9 percent market share.

About 80 percent of fiber provision is concentrated in 4 percent of Brazilian cities in the South East - this includes São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro.

Last year, the Brazilian government announced plans to roll out fiber optic technology across 90 percent of the country, but specifics of how and when that will happen are yet to be divulged.

Other major projects are underway to improve the Internet connectivity in the country: a Brazil-Angola submarine fiber optic cable will be ready in 2017 while a Google-sponsored undersea link will connect Brazil to the US and is due to commence operations later in 2016.

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