Internet De Colombia

[Elia Khensamphanh]

Accessto the Internet in Colombia shows a marked increase during the last few years. As of September 2009, the web connections surpassed two million,[1] as compared with an estimated total of 900,000 Internet subscribers by the end of 2005. The current figure equated to 17 million Internet users, plus 3.8 million mobile internet users, or 38.5 percent of the 2009 population, as compared with 4,739,000 Internet users in 2005, or 11.5 percent of the 2005 population (10.9 per 100 inhabitants).[2] Colombia had 581,877 Internet hosts in 2006.[2] This represents an overall growth of 54 percent each year, the highest in Latin America.[3] Although as many as 70 percent of Colombians accessed the Internet over their ordinary telephone lines, dial-up access is losing ground to broadband.[2] In 2005 Colombia had 345,000 broadband subscriber lines, or one per 100 inhabitants.[2] In 2006 the number of personal computers per 1,000 people increased to an estimated 87 per 1,000 inhabitants, a rate still below that in other large Latin American economies.[2] As of 2009, Colombia duplicated the number of personal computers reaching 26.3 percent, as compared with the rest of Latin America which showed a decreasing trend (being Argentina and Mexico the only other country with positive growth, showing a 2.3 increase).[4]

The first approximation to internet made by Colombia was in 1988 with the creation of RDUA, a local network, by University of the Andes, Colombia, then in 1994 the same university is entrusted by a group of other Colombian universities and some government agencies to become the first Internet Service Provider in the country, on June 4, 1994, the first signal coming from Homestead, FL was received, this signal was sent through "IMPSAT" satellite service to a hill in Bogot (Cerro de Suba), then redirected to Bogot's tallest building (Torre Colpatria) and finally to the university campus .[5]

Broadband Internet access has been available in Colombia since 1997. The service was originally charged in American dollars, remaining expensive. The pioneers in broadband access in Colombia were University of the Andes and Cable operator TV Cable S.A both based in Bogot, Colombia.

From 1997 to 2001, only the cities of Bogot and Bucaramanga had broadband Cable Internet access, although during that time, the service remained expensive and was only available in the richest neighbourhoods.

In the year 2001, ADSL Internet access appeared in Colombia. The appearance of ADSL Internet access meant a commercial war between the Telecom companies and the cable operators (mainly in Bogot and Bucaramanga). For some strange reason, Bogot, the largest city by size in Colombia, and Bucaramanga, the sixth city by size, have been the only cities where Cable and ADSL operators are available throughout the whole city at the same time. Nowadays the fiercest battles to attract broadband users are in Bogot and Bucaramanga.

Medelln, Cali, Barranquilla, and Cartagena the second, third, fourth and fifth cities by population in Colombia have only one ADSL operator that reaches the city as a whole. This means the ADSL operator and the cable operators are not competing directly in those cities so that tariffs are higher than in Bogot or Bucaramanga.

With respect to all the cities below one million inhabitants, ADSL broadband access is available through Colombia-Telecom (50% owned by Colombian Government and 50% owned by Telefnica from Spain). Because in these cities and towns the only broadband provider is Colombia-Telecom the service remains expensive.

Note: As of late (2007) Telefnica Colombia has expanded DSL operations to all Capital and Major cities and all cities with a main office and a main satellite.

There are no government restrictions on access to the Internet or credible reports that the government monitors e-mail or Internet chat rooms. Individuals and groups engage in the expression of views via the Internet, including by e-mail.[6] However, journalists in Colombia have long been targets of a range of attempts to obstruct or limit speech, from government threats to withhold publication licenses to outright intimidation and physical violence. Journalists in Colombia are threatened, physically attacked, or murdered. For journalists working in Latin America, death threats are commonplace. Because of threats from local drug cartels or other gangs and individuals, many journalists practice self-censorship, including many in Colombia who avoid reporting on corruption, drug trafficking, or violence by armed groups because of such threats.[7]

Colombia was classified as engaged in selective Internet filtering in the social area with little or no evidence of filtering in the political, conflict/security, or Internet tools areas by the OpenNet Initiative in 2011.[8]

Can anyone tell me what would be the easiest and cheapest way to access the internet? How common are HotSpots (biggest cities or towns) ? Can I rely on it or would be easier to buy 'pay and go' SIM card ? I am not going to use it for any social network or anything like that (except of SE Travel :) ). Google maps, general googling and highly possible online banking (from time to time) would be mostly used.

I can now share my experience... There was no need to buy any local SIM cards as WiFi is almost everywhere: hotels, hostels, B&Bs, restaurants and buses (long distance ones). Just to remind you, be sure your mobile is fully charged and definitely have power bank handy (especially on the bus).

Just buy a colombian prepaid simcard. Major carriers (Claro, Movistar or Tigo). I have used Movistar and Tigo, and I could recommend movistar. It has LTE, and the coverage and signal strength are good.

In the major cities, Bogota, Medellin, Cartagena etc you will find lots of free hotspot places like restaurants, pubs and bars. Even if you don't see hotspot advertised then feel free to ask the waiter for the logon details. Unlike in other countries most hotspots don't require any online registration, simply select the network and add the password for immediate unlimited access. If you are planning to travel about or want internet access in the street then a prepaid sim is your best bet, these are not locked so should be available to use on any cell phone. Again rural areas might suffer from weak mobile signal and hence poor internet but in most towns and cities you will get good coverage. I would recommend Claro and Movistar as the best providers.

Colombia, with 17 fixed internet connections per 100 inhabitants, ranks last among the member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). While the country has made progress in its digital transformation, achieving universal internet access, and harnessing the potential of connectivity for sustainable and inclusive economic development, remains a significant challenge for the government, which aims to connect 85% of the country.

Moreover, internet access varies from one department to another, as well as between rural and urban areas. According to figures from the Ministry of Information and Communication Technologies, the widest digital divide exists in the Amazonia and Orinoqua regions, specifically in the departments of Vichada, Vaups, Guaina, and Amazonas.

Although public connectivity programs have been implemented to provide a network infrastructure across the national territory, such as the National High-Speed Connectivity Project and the National Fiber Optic Network projects, these efforts have proven insufficient.

To support Colombia's progress in addressing its key development challenges, including high inequality, low productivity, limited economic diversification, and climate change, the World Bank conducted a study on digital infrastructure as a structural enabler of the human security and social justice axis.

The study's objective was to identify a technically, economically, financially, and regulatorily viable solution to close the digital divide in the Amazonas, one of the departments with the highest poverty rates. In 2021, the incidence of multidimensional poverty in the Amazonas department was 25.7%, around 10 percentage points higher than the national average of 16%.

As part of the study, a survey was conducted in households and businesses in the municipalities of Leticia and Puerto Nario and in non-municipalized areas (ANM) of Tarapac, La Chorrera, Puerto Arica, and Puerto Santander. Some of the data indicates that 44% of households have internet access; 70% of these are in urban areas, while only 17% are in rural areas. In these households, only 37% have used the internet for educational purposes, and 28% for work-related reasons. Furthermore, 72% of households belonging to indigenous communities lack internet experience, although 65% expressed interest in receiving training.

These solutions also consider service availability improvements in areas with low-quality coverage. With these technical conditions, access to multimedia applications and services such as video conferencing, video streaming, and interactive games could be facilitated, thereby promoting educational solutions and productivity improvements.

The study also suggests that, although the execution of the scenarios analyzed is technically feasible under current legal and regulatory frameworks, improvements can be made in the legal and regulatory aspects to promote connectivity in remote, rural, or vulnerable regions of Colombia. This could be achieved through the design, development, and implementation of a comprehensive regulatory strategy that includes the creation of a differential regulatory framework for rural or remote areas and the simplification of the procedures issued by municipalities to encourage the deployment of communication infrastructure.

All three scenarios require financing from USD 96 million to USD 105 million to cover capital and operational expenses over a 10-year period. The World Bank, the Universal Fund for Information and Communication Technologies (FUTIC), and microfinance companies have the capacity and interest to finance projects to close the digital divide.

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