Mexico: AT&T demands regulator look into Clarovideo’s offerings

AT&T, one of the newcomers to Mexico’s opening telecommunications sector, issued a statement this week warning its main rival, Telmex, that the Carlos Slim owned company should request authorization from the country’s telecomm regulator, IFT, before offering the Clarovideo on-demand video service as part of its package deals.

Mexico’s Federal Telecommunications Institute will have to verify that other market players, including AT&T itself, are capable of replicating the offers and bundles offered by América Móvil’s operation. Otherwise, AT&T claims the company would be engaging in unfair competition. Cristina Ruíz, head of External Affairs for AT&T’s Mexico operation elaborated, saying “the conditions for effective competition would not exist without the application of additional regulation. The lack of effective competition can have a negative effect on the welfare of Mexico’s population, as well as slowing its potential economic growth.”

The spokeswoman continued, demanding América Móvil to hand over to regulators a full roster of their passive infrastructure (such as transmission towers and poles,) and requesting it be prevented from striking exclusive deals. “The aim of the Telecommunications Reform was to reduce market concentration, making the special rules on preponderant (dominant) actors only temporary, to be removed once the dominant economic actor has sufficiently reduced their market share…”

Full Content: La Voz

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