With the goal of launching broadband services in the region, AT&T Tuesday spent $300 million to buy Brazilian IP network carrier Netstream.
AT&T plans to expand the Brazilian company’s network and to offer broadband technology in the country’s major business centers. The telecommunications giant also aims to offer voice, data, Internet and electronic commerce services through the acquisition.
Netstream, a year-old telecommunications company, has built a network based on optical ATM/IP technology in the key cities of Brazil with more than 30,000 km of fiber optics. Netstream was originally a project of Promon Tecnologia S.A., a corporation which develops engineering solutions for various industries.
“Today’s agreement follows closely on our recently announced investments in Japan and Canada, and is another step by AT&T to better serve multinational customers by extending our network seamlessly around the world,” said John Zeglis, president of AT&T. “Through our acquisition of Netstream, we are extending that reach to and through Brazil, the largest center of economic activity in Latin America.”
AT&T also recently invested in Alestra, a long-distance carrier in Mexico.
The Brazilian telecommunications industry is estimated to be worth $14 billion, with advanced data services growing 20 percent each year.