WOM, Entel boast 5G deployments in Chile

Chilean operators WOM and Entel, two of the country's four 5G-licensed companies, announced new milestones in the deployment of their networks for the technology as competition for coverage and users heats up.

WOM said it reached 3,950 5G antennas deployed throughout the country, representing around 80% of the total of 5,034 it committed to in 2021 as part of the 5G tender obligations.

The number of antennas it committed to is twice that of each of the other operators, according to a WOM statement cited by media outlets. 

The company claims to now cover over 320 municipalities in Chile, with 5G available to over 18mn people, including more than 300,000 living in rural areas. The exact number of 5G clients was not provided.

WOM's announcement comes after watchdog Subtel refused to extend an April deadline for the deployment of 5G antennas, a decision subsequently upheld by the Santiago appellate court.

The company previously pledged to invest US$350mn in its 5G roll-out on top of the US$150mn it disbursed for the spectrum license in the 2021 tender.

ENTEL

Meanwhile, the leading mobile carrier in the country, Entel, claims to have over 1.5mn clients using its 5G network.

The company just announced the activation of two 5G antennas on the island of Rapa Nui (Easter Island), 3,500km off the coast, as part of its second phase of the 5G tender commitments. 

According to Entel, its 5G network is now available from Putre in the far north to Puerto Williams on the Beagle Channel. Unlike WOM, however, Entel did not specify the total number of 5G antennas it has deployed to date.

“Rapa Nui has always been among our priorities, and this is one more example of our commitment," Entel's CEO Antonio Büchi said in a statement.

However, the company admitted that the satellite connections for mobile internet on the island are “rather inferior” to fiber optic ones on the mainland.

Entel recently announced plans to invest US$160mn in deploying 5G this year, as well as US$190mn in boosting its 4G network. 

The company had a 34.7% share of the mobile market at end-2022, according to Subtel. It was followed by WOM, which grew 5 percentage points last year to 25.4% and Movistar (down to 21.2%).