Battle for iPhone 5 customers starts tonight

The Costa Rican Electricity Institute (ICE) is set to sell the iPhone 5 at 10 p.m. on Thursday, according to an advertising campaign published in local papers.

The competition for fans of the Apple phone was initiated by Spanish company Movistar, which on Wednesday reported that they would begin selling Apple’s phones at midnight. Claro, the third authorized dealer in the country, also will offer the iPhone 5 at midnight.

However, none of the companies has disclosed information on service plans and rates to be offered with the smarthphone.

ICE reported that at 10 p.m., 16 stores would sell the phone in the provinces of San José, Limón, Alajuela, Puntarenas and Guanacaste. On Friday, the phone will be available at ICE’s branches in Heredia and Cartago.

Costa Rica will join 50 countries that will offer the iPhone 5 on Friday, after it hit the market on Sept. 12 in 47 other countries.