Mexico. Before the end of 2012, Mexico will have the necessary resources to conclude the process of adopting digital television, through a budget item for the process to be granted by the Senate of the Republic.
The secretary of the communications commission in the Senate of that country, Marco Antonio Blazquez, indicated that the budget for digital television is a project that is processed as a matter of urgency, since legislators recognize the importance of the process for the industry and for the country.
The budget that the Federal Telecommunications Commission, Cofetel, estimated for this process in 2010 was US$1.6 billion, resources that would be allocated to support and accelerate the adoption of digital television.
But this figure will most likely be lower in the budget that is approved this year, if it is taken into account that in the policy for the transition of DTT approved in May, it was agreed that only free decoders for digital television will be delivered to people with low resources and who do not have digital televisions at the time of the analog blackout.
In this way, it is expected that Mexico can reach the goal of the digital blackout, set for 2015.
In addition, the official also commented that instead of discussing a third free-to-air television network, they should focus on frequency tenders for digital open television, which encourage regional broadcasts and generate greater competition than through a regional network.
