Spanish telecom group Telefónica saw its 2012 net profits fall by 27.3% to $5.14 billion, while its debt dropped by almost $6.5 billion on a quarterly basis to $67.1 billion after a variety of asset sales. Today the company released its quarterly and year-end financial results. It noted that its Latin American operations consolidated its [...]

The fourth quarter profits of Latin America’s largest telecom company, América Móvil, have disappointed analysts. The telecom operator’s revenue for the fourth quarter of 2012 was down 1.1% year-over-year, and its net income was down 8.2%. According to Reuters, América Móvil’s fourth quarter profits of $1.179 billion were far below analysts’ expectation of $1.901 billion [...]

Now two telecom operators in Brazil are looking for new CEOs. Following the announcement of Oi CEO Francisco Valim’s departure in January, the No. 2 mobile phone company in Brazil, TIM, said that CEO Andrea Mangoni will step down March 4. Mangoni was named CEO less than a year ago replacing Luca Luciani, who resigned [...]

When presenting preliminary fourth quarter and full year results for 2012, which were below market expectations, NII Holdings said its Brazilian unit will offer voice and data services more broadly on its 3G network in São Paulo by the end of the second quarter of 2013 and in Rio de Janeiro by the end of the year. NII [...]

Brazilian carrier Oi had a difficult day yesterday. Following the resignation of its CEO Francisco Valim, who occupied the position for only a year and a half, and nomination of chairman José Mauro Mettrau Carneiro da Cunha as his temporary replacement, Oi saw its shares fall almost 8%. To try to reverse this situation, Oi [...]

The Argentinean unit of Spain-based carrier, Telefónica, announced that it will invest about $2.042 billion (10,000 million pesos) over the two-year period of 2013-2014. Investments will focus on developing communication services and expanding the company’s data-customer base, as well as increasing broadband capacity, expanding mobile networks and implementing fiber optic networks. Follow RCR Wireless News—Americas [...]

Less than a week after Claro and Bradesco announced their m-payment platform, Telefónica and MasterCard held a press conference yesterday in São Paulo to present a similar solution with the same goal: to include Brazilians without bank accounts in the financial system, using a prepaid mobile account.  Be sure to follow us on Twitter, Facebook and subscribe to our [...]

América Móvil’s Brazilian wireless unit, Claro, and Brazil-based Bradesco, one of the largest banks in Latin America, announced plans launch two mobile payment services in 2013. The solutions result from a joint venture the companies formed last year, named MPO (Mobile Payment Operator). Both products — a co-branded virtual wallet tied to a mobile line and a [...]

Brazilian carrier Oi posted positive results for its third quarter period. The company reported that its revenues have grown as well as its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, EBITDA margin and net earnings compared to the previous quarter. However, over the same period its net debt increased and its available cash decreased. Follow [...]

NII Holdings, which recently announced plans to cut 20% of its workforce at its Reston, Va., headquarters, posted a 44% decrease in its consolidated operating income before depreciation and amortization to $218 million for the third quarter of 2012. The company, which operates under the Nextel brand across a handful of Latin American countries, also [...]