Internet access as a public service will be a reality in Chile

Congress has passed the Internet Access as a Public Telecommunications Service bill into law. The initiative was announced by President Gabriel Boric himself during his first state-of-the-nation address. 

This bill will give greater powers to the Telecommunications Undersecretary’s Office (SUBTEL) in terms of oversight. It will also allow people to activate the demand subsidy mechanism, as occurs with electricity and drinking water, providing the most vulnerable families with help to pay their internet bills. 

This bill is part of the Zero Digital Gap Plan 2022-2025. The central aim is that all inhabitants of Chile have access to connectivity, regardless of where they live or the economic means they have to pay for it. 

Scope of the project

The bill defines internet access as a public telecommunications service intended to satisfy the communications needs of people in general. 

The initiative indicates that telecommunications companies must provide coverage to users who are within their service area. For example, if a company provides service to the municipality of La Pintana, it should now cover the entire municipality and not just some sectors within it, as is currently the case. 

The bill recognizes the presidential power - during the annual budget discussion - to activate the provision of a subsidy to pay internet service bills for a certain percentage of the most vulnerable users in the country, as they appear on the Social Households Register (RSH) or another suitable instrument. The above will be charged to the Telecommunications Development Fund (FDT). 

A series of regulations must first be issued before the law can be applied.