Argentina's communications regulator and the state secretary for modernization announced with the three mobile operators Claro, Movistar and Personal the 'Connected Summer' plan, aimed at bringing improved mobile coverage along the Atlantic coast for the summer season. In Mar del Plata, they announced that 80 new base stations have been installed, adding to the 1,000 already providing 4G coverage in the main resorts.
The improved coverage is expected to support growing demand for internet services and tourism in the local economy. Additional 4G base stations were added around Mar del Plata as well as the coastal areas San Clemente del Tuyu, Santa Teresita, San Bernardo, Mar de Ajo, Villa Party Gesell and Partido de Pinamar.
The expansion is part of the coverage requirements in 4G licences. In the past two years, the number of 4G base stations deployed across the country increased more than 150 percent, going from 7,600 to over 20,000, for coverage of 58 percent. The National Communications Plan targets coverage of 93 percent of the population by the end of this year, including deployment in 1,713 cities of more than 10,000 inhabitants, 9,961 km of roads and 200 small localities that do yet have quality mobile internet.
The expansion has helped reduce the call drop rate by 50 percent in the past year, Enacom said. At the same, mobile data traffic rose 250 percent year-on-year on 31 December.