Translated from the original Spanish article. Read in Spanish
News published on October 22, 2026. The situation may have changed since then.
Movistar is disappearing in Argentina… and it's being replaced by a social network that had already died. Six million lines are being renamed Tuenti.
Tuenti?
Yes. It was born in Spain in 2006, and people called it "the Spanish Facebook". It reached more than fifteen million users.
In 2010, Telefónica, Movistar's owner, bought a majority stake for seventy million euros. But then came Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp… and the social network faded out.
Telefónica was already using the Tuenti name for a budget mobile brand, and that's how it reached Argentina in 2014.
The twist
In 2025, Telecom bought Movistar Argentina for 1.245 billion dollars. To avoid controlling almost the entire market, the competition authority required it to give up customers.
Metrotel is taking them for 450 million dollars: about 6 million mobile lines and nearly 200,000 home internet connections. And it will use the Tuenti name.
About 6 million mobile lines are moving from Movistar to Tuenti.
What you need to do
If you receive the switch message, you don't need to change your SIM card or your number: your number, plan and conditions stay the same. The notices began on October 19 and will continue until the end of November 2026.
Watch out for scams: nobody will ask you for passwords or codes for the switch.
This story is also a video
We explain it in a video on our channel (in Spanish). Subscribe for the story behind each headline.
Watch the video on YouTubeWould you stay with Tuenti… or switch carriers?
Tell us in the comments on the video.
Sources (in Spanish)
- Transferencia de líneas a Metrotel y uso de la marca Tuenti: Infobae, MDZ y El Argentino Diario.
- Qué cambia para los usuarios (número, chip y plan): El Cronista y Hoy Día.
- Historia de la red social Tuenti: Wikipedia (Tuenti).
Photos are from Wikimedia Commons under free licenses; the author and license are shown under each image.
