MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Three out of four Chileans have mobile phones

Almost three out of four Chileans have a mobile phone, according to a recent 3G Américas study. In a country of 15 million residents, more than 12 million have a mobile phone.

The study documents a 12.7% growth in mobile phone ownership in the first half of 2006 compared to the same period last year, and confirms that mobile phone companies added one million users this past year.

Chile, with 74% of the population owning phones, has the highest mobile phone penetration in Latin America. Argentina is second with 68%, followed by Colombia, Venezuela and Brazil.

The market leader is Movistar, owned by Spanish mobile giant Telefónica Moviles, with 45.6%. Entel is second with 37.9% and "newcomer" Claro (formerly Smartcom) has 16.5%.

The number of mobile phones could go even higher as experts predict a war on prices with the launch of Claro.

By Morten Szygenda The Santiago Times - News about Chile