Nextel del Peru, the Peruvian mobile arm of Chile’s Entel, has activated a 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) network in the San Borja district of Lima although the service is not yet available to customers, Telegeography.com reported on Oct 7, 2014. Sector regulator Osiptel reported on 2 October that the cellco had satisfied the basic terms of its 4G license by rolling out coverage to at least one area of the capital by 30 September 2014. Nextel was awarded the ‘B’ block of Advanced Wireless Services (AWS) spectrum (i.e. within the 1710MHz-1770MHz/2110MHz-2170MHz band) on 30 September 2013.

In a related development, local technology news portal Perusmart reports that Nextel has begun rebranding to Entel Peru. Although no official announcement has yet been made, the company has started refitting its store signs and marketing with the Entel name and logo, replacing the existing Nextel marketing. As noted by TeleGeography’s GlobalComms Database, Entel acquired Nextel from US-based NII Holdings in August 2013 for $410.6 million. The Chilean group also stated earlier this year that it intends to abandon the Nextel moniker by the end of 2014.