Ecuadorian regulator Supertel reports that the country’s mobile operators reached 15.8 million telephony subscribers between them at the end of 2011, compared to 15 million a year earlier. Market shares were only fractionally changed from a year ago: Claro, the local subsidiary of America Movil, claimed around 70% of the total, with Telefonica unit Movistar Ecuador serving around 28% of users and state-backed CNT bringing up the rear with a 2% share.
Growth of the total market is being affected by the implementation of compulsory pre-paid mobile user registration; Ecuadorian SIM card owners were given nine months from 5 July 2011 to register their details on a national database or have their services limited from 5 April 2012 to incoming calls or messages only. In July 2012 all remaining unregistered SIMs will be disconnected.