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The number of Latin American broadband access points is projected to reach 28.5 million in 2012, up from 12.5 million in 2006, according to Frost & Sullivan's "Latin America Broadband Services Market" report.

 With broadband prices falling many first-time Internet users are signing up. Growth is also due to subscribers upgrading from dial-up.

"The perceived growth in broadband services and the expected growth in the future are aligned with two main factors, namely the migration from traditional dial-up connections highly promoted by Internet providers and the low costs of new plans with more complete offers," said Andrs Sciarrotta, a research analyst with Frost & Sullivan.

Frost & Sullivan pointed out that the market still has a way to go.

"To overcome the challenges faced by broadband penetration, it is crucial for operators and ISPs to forge alliances and make acquisitions so that they can present all three services, namely voice, video and data," Mr. Sciarrotta said.

"Making such complete offers will allow them to be more competitive and gain more subscribers," he said.