Telefonica has commercially launched mobile services in Costa Rica. Movistar will compete with former monopoly, the Costa Rican Electricity Institute (ICE), new entrant Claro, and local start-up Fullmovil, Tico Times reports. Movistar services and handsets are currently available at 150 locations, and pre-paid customers can top-up their Movistar mobile accounts at over 50,000 spots across the country. Movistar offers BlackBerry phones and iPhone devices, as well as data cards that can be plugged into a computer's USB port to provide internet access. Movistar's prepay services are available for a starting price of CRC 2,500 (approximately USD 5). The operator also provides five postpaid tariff pans with monthly fees ranging between CRC 3,250 and CRC 34,000. The plans include voice minutes, SMS, and MB for internet traffic. Movistar plans to expand its network coverage throughout the country as part of a three-phase project during the next five years.
