Cross posted at VivirLatino.com

Brazil, Latin America’s largest country, is also the most connected, according to a recent study published by eMarketer. Brazilians are online en masse in numbers that are expected to double between now and 2011, as more and more people get broadband connections.

According to the report, Brazil is the country with the third most broadband connections in the Americas, following the United States and Canada.

EMarketer also points out that while high-speed internet connections are still inaccessible to most people because of cost, Brazil leads large Spanish-speaking Latin markets Mexico and Argentina in terms of the number of people connected.

Via eMarketer

Cross-posted at VivirLatino.com

The Coca Cola company, one of the first corporations to dabble in U.S. Latino marketing (and international marketing emperors) is taking the idea of targeting Latin American immigrants outside of their home country to the Spanish market.

Coca-Cola, recognizing the tremendous growth of the Latino immigrant population in Spain — specifically Ecuadorians — has decided to tap into a market that is being ignored by rival beverage companies. They are looking to appeal to the tastes of the Ecuadorian community, who, nostalgic for anything reminding them of home, might embrace a soft drink that does just that. In addition, Coke is doing the same with for the Moroccan community.

The company has decided to bring two of their more popular soft drinks in both countries: Fioravanti, a strawberry drink which is consumed so much in Ecuador that it is only topped by Coca Cola, and Hawai, a fruit juice drink popular in Morocco.

According to Spanish daily 20 Minutos, Ecuadorian immigrants in Spain see this push on Coke’s part as a way to help integrate themselves into Spanish society, and at the same time share some of their culture with the Spanish:

Rita Gotayde, president of the Association of Ecuadorians and Friends of Foreigners (Adeyade), calls the initiatve to bring Fioravanti to Spain “very good”, because she considers it to be way to integrate Ecuadorians and “not only for Equadorians who miss their drink, their food…also for Spaniards who are going to get to know something from our country that is very good.”

Moroccan community leaders are also enthusiastic about their drink hitting the Spanish market, because:

“…it helps integration because it takes into account the Moroccan community’s tastes.”

“It’s not concretely about the drink, even though it’s important, but it helps. We would like that other companies and non-companies to take us into consideration as well.”

Social integration through soft drinks? What do you think?

Via / 20 Minutos