Americatel Seeks More U.S. Reach

Chilean telecom Americatel is talking with several Hispanic shops about its $25 million consumer ad account as it seeks to gain a greater share of the U.S. market, sources said.

Hispanics in the U.S. spend about $20 billion on telecommunications, more than 40 percent of the category’s ethnic market, according to a study by telecommunications-research and analysis firm Insight Research. According to Hispanic Business, category leader AT&T spent $45 million on targeted efforts last year.

“The category is so large, there is so much money to be made, the expenditure [proposed by Americatel] is totally in line with the potential,” said George San Jose, president of Chicago’s San Jose Group.

A company representative could not be reached.