Mexico ponders the power of its broadcast giants

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Mexicans who have been waiting decades for more competition in their nation’s television sector are going to have to wait a little longer. Hector Osuna, president of the Federal Telecommunications Commission, said this week that his agency is going to have to do lengthy studies of the nation’s broadcasting spectrum before awarding licenses for new radio and TV concessions.

Osuna said the research likely won’t be completed until 2008, ensuring the continued dominance of Televisa and TV Azteca for the foreseeable future. The two networks control 94% of the nation’s television stations and virtually all of its advertising revenue, making Mexico the most closed TV market in Latin America outside of Cuba.

Broadcasting is one of several key industries dominated by oligopolies, which are being blamed for retarding Mexico’s economic growth and exacerbating income inequality. Seven of the 10 Mexicans listed on this year’s Forbes ranking of the world’s richest people made their money in industries where there is little or no competition in Mexico.

They include telecom mogul Carlos Slim Helu, who recently surpassed American investor Warren Buffett to become the world’s second-richest man with a net worth estimated at $53.1 billion, as well as TV Azteca Chairman Ricardo Salinas Pliego (No. 172, $4.6 billion) and Emilio Azcarraga Jean (No. 459, $2.1 billion), chairman and chief executive of Grupo Televisa.

Posted by Marla Dickerson in Mexico City