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 Edificio República, ENTel headquarters | |
| Company type | State-owned |
|---|---|
| Industry | Telecommunications |
| Predecessor | Teléfonos del Estado (1946–56) |
| Founded | 1956[1] |
| Founder | Government of Argentina |
| Defunct | 1990; 35 years ago (1990) |
| Successor | Telecom Argentina Telefónica de Argentina |
| Headquarters | , |
Area served | Argentina |
| Services | Telephone Telegraphy Wireless telegraphy |
| Owner | Government of Argentina |
Number of employees | 45,000 |
TheEmpresa Nacional de Telecomunicaciones (National Telecommunications Enterprise, mostly known for its acronymENTel) was an Argentinestate-owned enterprise which had the monopoly on public telecommunications in the country.
Originally set-up in 1956 during the government ofde facto PresidentPedro Eugenio Aramburu after thenationalization of all the assets and services of the private companies that had operated Argentina's telephone services until that point carried out byJuan Perón.[2] In 1990, the company was liquidated under theCarlos Menem's administration that privatised most of public services and companies in the country, withTelecom andTelefónica taking over the telephone services previously managed by ENTel.
In 1946, the Government of Argentina acquired the "Compañía Unión Telefónica del Río de la Plata" that managed the entiretelecommunications industry in the country, subsequently creating the "Empresa Mixta Telefónica Argentina" (EMTA) that mixed state-owned and private investments. Nevertheless president of ArgentinaJuan Perón dissolved the mixed society therefore EMTA became a whole state-owned company through decree nº 8.104. The company was renamed "Teléfonos del Estado" in 1949.[2]
During the following decade, based on the financing of the national State, the service expanded significantly, with the installation of new lines and local exchanges, and the integration of the network, through new trunk lines. On this structure, in 1956, under the government ofRevolución Libertadora, "Empresa Nacional de Teléfonos" (State Telephones) or "ENTel" was established[2] through decree nº 310. The company providedtelephone,telegraphy, andwireless telegraphy services.[1]
ENTel oversaw an expansion and modernisation of the country's telecommunications, but with arrival of themilitary dictatorship of 1976-83 began a period of stagnation which had an adverse effect on the quality of service and on waiting lists for service and repairs, to the point that to get a phone line had to wait up to 15 years. TheRaúl Alfonsín administration attempted to modernize and expand service at ENTel with the Megatel plan, though the effort was ultimately hampered by the company's financial difficulties, which included losses of half a milliondollars daily, and debts of over US$370 million.[3]
Access to telephone service in Argentina remained low in comparison with nations of similar income level, with around 3.5 million lines for 8.5 million households, as well as antiquated, as seven out of eight units wererotary phones.[4] The company, in 1990, was among the first proposed for privatization during the government of PresidentCarlos Menem.
ENTel was privatised by being split into two companies:Sociedad Licenciataria Norte S.A. andSociedad Licenciataria Sur S.A.. These, in turn, were sold toFrance Télécom andTelefónica de España (bothState enterprises themselves, at the time) during a 1990 bidding process presided over by Menem's appointed receiver,María Julia Alsogaray. Upon their transfer, these entities became known asTelecom Argentina andTelefónica de Argentina, respectively. The total value of the sale reached US$7.3 billion, and included the retirement of US$5 billion inforeign debt.[4]
Purchasing a divided national phone market along roughly equal sides of a north-south line, each company was given an initial, 7 year monopoly beginning November 8, 1990. At the same time, other companies were given exclusive licences for international long distance,telex and cellular phone service. ENTel remained in existence for a number of years as a residuary body, running off existing contracts and completing the details of its sale.
Media related toENTEL at Wikimedia Commons
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