o can afford high-speed Internet access via wireless broadband. Internet access is also skewed toward wealthier areas in large cities. At the end of 2011, only 39 percent of Brazilian households had broadband Internet access. Most of those were costly at about $50 monthly. According to the United Nations Public Administration Network news report issued on May 17, 2011, excerpted from Xinhua News, close to half of the households with Internet access had speeds of only 256Kbps. Most fixed-line broadband services, particularly higher-speed services, are concen- trated in large cities in the Southeast, chiefly São Paolo and Rio de Janeiro. These ser- vices are largely based on Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) technology, with some based on cable modems. Lower-income areas are starting to achieve access via cyber cafés. To increase broadband adoption, the Brazilian government announced a National Broadband Plan in 2010 to improve the availability and lower the prices of wired and mobile broadband in underserved areas. To that end, the government is subsidizing construction of fiber-optic networks and last-mile connections in these areas. It is also adding broadband connections to schools in underserved areas to foster online learn- ing. The government's goal is to increase GDP by enabling more people to make online purchases and to improve businesses' access to broadband in smaller cites. In addi- tion, Brazil's major phone operators are constructing a national fiber-optic backbone to enable high-speed mobile connectivity in time for its hosting of the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympics. Officials are expecting a spike in usage during these events along with increased roaming revenues. Telecommunications was privatized in 1998. Prior to that, the government owned the main wireline provider, Telebras. As part of the privatization, Brazil opened the country to competition and granted spectrum licenses in each region to mobile provid- ers. Many of these providers subsequently merged and there are now four main mobi