No menu items!

COSTA RICA'S LEADING ENGLISH LANGUAGE NEWSPAPER

HomeArchive97% of Costa Ricans Lack High-Speed Internet

97% of Costa Ricans Lack High-Speed Internet

DESPITE various attempts to increase high-speed Internet service in Costa Rica, only 3% of the population has access to such a connection, the daily La Nación reported this week.

 

An average of three people use each of the 43,000 wide-band Internet connections available in the country, for a total of 130,000 users out of the 4.2 million population. Approximately 20,000 of these connections are the ADSL lines available from the Costa Rican Electricity Institute (ICE) since August 2004; the remaining 23,000 are cable modem lines, distributed since 1999 by Radiográfica Costarricense, S.A. (RACSA), the state telegram and Internet company.

 

Costa Rica has approximately 10 wide-band subscriptions for every 1,000 inhabitants; according to the International Telecommunications Network. In 2004, there were 248 connections per 1,000 inhabitants in South Korea, 127 in the United States and 59 in Chile. However, ICE figures show that Costa Rica’s high-speed Internet availability ranks it near the top in Latin America.

 

Wide-band Internet connections allow the user to access the Web 24 hours per day on a flat rate, and uses a dedicated line, eliminating the need to interrupt phone service while using the Internet. The connection also makes it easier to use resources such as video, make Internet phone calls and commercial transactions, and download large documents.

 

The United Nations has characterized high-speed connections as crucial for developing nations, La Nación reported.

 

Now, ADSL connections are available in 60 locations, 85% of which are within

the greater San José area.

 

Trending Now

Why Costa Rica Feels Like a Safe Haven for This Longtime Expat

If someone asked me to sum up why I live in Costa Rica in 5 words or less, my answer could well be: “It...

Costa Rica Hunts for Nicaraguan Hit Squad After Exile’s Assassination

Costa Rica’s Judicial Investigation Agency (OIJ) is investigating whether a hit squad tied to Nicaragua’s Ortega-Murillo regime is targeting exiled critics on its soil....

Celso Gamboa Allegedly Ran Drug Ring with Costa Rican Government Ties

Celso Gamboa, once Costa Rica’s Security Minister and a Supreme Court judge, now faces extradition to the U.S. for leading a major cocaine trafficking...

Costa Rica Maintains Economic Stability Amid Global Tensions

Costa Rica is holding steady economically despite global tensions sparked by conflicts involving Israel, the United States, and Iran, according to Federico Quesada Chaves,...

Life After MS-13 in El Salvador as Residents Seek a Fragile Peace

Esperanza Martinez lost three relatives who were murdered and saw numerous bodies left in the streets of her neighborhood, a former stronghold of the...

Costa Rica’s Pride March 2025 Defies Restrictions and Celebrates Diversity

A large crowd gathered in Paseo Colón, San José, to participate in the LGBTIQ+ Pride March 2025. It began at noon, as people marched...
Avatar
spot_img
Costa Rica Tours
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Travel Insurance
Costa Rica Rocking Chait
Costa Rica Travel

Latest News from Costa Rica