A recent survey from Pyramid Research found that fiber optic access in Latin America is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 44% in the 2012-2017 period as the deployment of fiber optic networks reduces the digital gap in the region.

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In Brazil, for example, the Brazilian unit of Telecom Italia announced it will launch its ultra high-speed broadband service during the third quarter of this year using VDSL networks. Branded with an English name, “Live TIM” has been in trials since May 7 and follows TIM Brazil’s 2011 acquisition of AES Atimus, which operated a 5,500-kilometer fiber-optic network in Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and other major Brazilian cities.

The Brazilian carrier Oi has also begun to install fiber optics in Paraguay and to offer corporate service. It has been authorized by the Paraguayan National Telecommunications Commission (Conatel) to begin operations in the eastern side of the country as a wholesaler.

In Colombia, the National Fiber Optic Project’s goals are to deploy fiber optic cables in at least 400 new municipalities and connect a total of 700 municipalities (90% of the country) by 2014. The consortium Unión Temporal Fibra Óptica Colombia, comprised of Mexico’s TV Azteca and Total Play, has won the project’s auction with a deal worth about U.S.$640 million in public and private investment, including $220 million for the state and $420 million for the awarded company.

Last year, Ecuadorian National Telecommunication Corp. (CNT in Spanish: Corporación Nacional de Telecomunicaciones) announced that it would invest U.S.$8.2 million to construct fiber-optic infrastructure.