America Movil currently has over 10 million 5G subscribers nationwide
Mexican operator América Móvil, which operates under the Telcel brand, reached 125 cities with its 5G network, América Móvil’s deputy director of communication and government relations, Renato Flores Cartas said via social media.
The executive also added that the operator currently has over 10 million 5G subscribers nationwide.
Telcel is Mexico’s largest mobile operator, with a total of 83.4 million users at the end of September, of which 68.6 million were prepaid.
“In addition to providing the highest upload and download speeds, Telcel’s 5G network is the most efficient in its operation, since it has a system that allows energy savings, as well as balancing its capacity according to user demand,” said Flores.
Telcel initially launched its commercial 5G network in February 2022 in 18 of Mexico’s largest cities, using infrastructure from Ericsson and Huawei.
America Movil operates in at least 10 markets, mainly in Latin America. In Europe, the telco partially owns dutch telco KPN and Austrian operator Telekom Austria.
Rival operator AT&T Mexico is offering its 5G services in various cities across the country. The operator’s 5G services are active in Mexico City, Guadalajara, Monterrey, Tijuana, Mexicali, Ciudad Juárez, Mazatlan, Ciudad Obregon, Navojoa, Guasave, Ensenada, Puerto Penasco Guamuchil, Hemosillo, Culiacan, Saltillo, Torreon and Morelia, among other cities.
AT&T had initially launched 5G services in Mexico in December 2022 using spectrum in the 2.5 GHz band.
Movistar, which initially launched 5G services in Ciudad de Mexico, Culiacan and Hermosillo, is using AT&T’s network infrastructure for the provision of 5G in Mexico. Both telcos had inked a network infrastructure-sharing agreement in 2019.
Mexico plans to hold a spectrum auction this year to award additional spectrum for 5G services. Local telecom watchdog IFT previously said it plans to offer spectrum in the 600 MHz and 3.5 GHz bands.
5G subscribers in Mexico are expected to reach 87 million by 2030, up compared to 16.9 million in 2025, according to a report by telecom association GSMA.
The GSMA report showed that 5G penetration in the Mexican market is expected to reach 13% by 2025 while it would expand to 62% by 2030.
GSMA also noted that 5G networks will cover 86% of Mexico’s population by 2030, up from 54% in 2025.
