OREANDA-NEWS. Fitch Ratings expects Colombian telecommunication company ratings to remain stable in 2016 despite the likelihood of increasing competitive pressures during the year, according to a new report published today. Competition is bound to intensify as major telecommunication players make efforts to penetrate and consolidate their network integration in order to provide convergent services with an emphasis on mobility.

The degree of further profitability erosion will depend on the price strategy to be followed by market leaders such as Claro and whether market share objectives lead to commoditization of data services, one of the business segments with an important potential contribution to future ARPU evolution. Fitch estimates industry-wide EBITDAR margins will continue to lose ground given observed competitive trends.