Latin America. Last week there were two very important events in the communications sector at an international level that although they will not have an impact in the short term in the rest of the world, if they will lay the foundations to define the course of the sector in the coming decades. I'm referring specifically to the removal of net neutrality rules and AT&T's purchase of Time Warner.
Net Neutrality
If you recall, on December 14, 2017, a vote was taken to eliminate net neutrality. However, it was not until June 11, six months later, that the rule that eliminates it completely in the United States of America came into force.
Almost all the scenarios mentioned in the media are fatalistic about what will happen to the Internet after the elimination of neutrality, but there are elements of the market and the new regulation that show that the internet will continue to have the same dynamism that it has had until before its elimination.
These changes for now will only have an effect in the neighboring country (and it remains to be seen since some states like California are formulating their own laws to reinstate net neutrality), however, depending on how the Internet behaves in the coming years I am sure it will serve to lay the foundations, or not, of how legislation will be carried out in the rest of the world.
By the way, in Mexico the legislation ensures the neutrality of the network but we still have to establish the guidelines that regulate it.
AT&T and Time Warner
After several months of being under review, the purchase of Time Warner was approved by AT&T. This purchase was made in the amount of 85.4 billion dollars and was authorized without any conditions for both companies.
This operation brings together the leading telecommunications provider in the United States with one of the world leaders in the creation of film and television content. This merger bases its logic on an international trend in which the most important infrastructure and technology companies are starting to produce or acquire their own content, which together with infrastructure resources constitute a perfect pairing to remain within the preference of consumers.
In the case of Mexico, this acquisition was previously approved by the IFT and subject to some market conditions so as not to affect the competitive ecosystem.
Although part of the promise with the elimination of net neutrality was that it would be switching to a scheme in which the regulator (FCC) would supervise only those cases in which it is identified that anti-competitive practices exist, the authorization of the purchase of Time Warner will be the first litmus test to demonstrate that the elimination of neutrality was a success and that it will be fully monitored. that AT&T does not prioritize the transmission of its content, reducing that of other players.
Text written by Gonzalo Rojon of The Competitive Intelligence Unit.
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