Background on the Telecommunications and Broadcasting Law Initiative
This week, the Senate of the Republic concluded a series of discussions on the Telecommunications and Broadcasting Law initiative. These talks have brought forth significant reflections on various aspects of this legislative proposal, some of which were already incorporated into the outline of modifications announced by José Peña Merino, head of the Digital Transformation and Telecommunications Agency (ATDT), during a recent morning press conference.
Previously Mentioned Changes
In my previous contribution, I highlighted some of the anticipated changes, which were subsequently confirmed by Peña Merino. These included granting the ATDT the authority to temporarily block digital platforms and the idea of mandating Mexican television channels, both open and pay, to seek approval from the Secretariat of the Interior for broadcasting content produced with foreign government, organizational, corporate, or individual funding.
Institutional Structure Adjustments
An important change acknowledged during these discussions is the realization that structuring regulation for telecommunications and broadcasting under a single-person institutional framework without decision-making autonomy, free from operator and political influences, is erroneous. The announcement to modify the initiative to establish a subordinate body, with its highest decision-making instance being a quorum of five commissioners appointed for fixed terms, has been positively received by those monitoring these sectors.
Remaining Concerns
However, several fundamental issues remain unresolved. These include violations of Article 28 of the Constitution regarding the distribution of competencies between the new authority for competition and free market and the regulatory body overseeing telecommunications and broadcasting, which will be a subordinate entity of the ATDT.
Constitutional Clarity on Regulatory Powers
The Constitution clearly states that the federal executive, through the competition and free market authority, will exclusively exercise economic competition powers to asymmetrically regulate telecommunications and broadcasting market participants with the aim of effectively eliminating barriers to competition and free market.
All asymmetric regulation of economic agents in these sectors, including determining whether an agent is preponderant or holds significant market power and various specific obligations to eliminate barriers to competition and free market, solely fall under the jurisdiction of the competition authority. There is no room for correcting these matters via a lower-tier regulation favoring the ATDT, as established by the constitutional reform.
IFT Extinction Timeline Correction
Additionally, the initiative aims to “correct” the issue of the IFT’s definitive extinction timeline. The constitutional reform decrees in Articles Décimo and Décimo Primero Transitorios state that modifications to paragraphs Fifteenth through Twentieth of Article 28 will take effect within 180 days following the enactment of secondary legislation related to competition and free market laws, as well as telecommunications and broadcasting laws.
There is no way to interpret this via a lower-tier law to extend the IFT’s definitive extinction date beyond what the Constitution mandates. Resisting this correction does not reflect well on the proposed regulatory approach.
Key Questions and Answers
- What are the main topics discussed during the Senate’s conversatorios? Significant reflections on various aspects of the Telecommunications and Broadcasting Law initiative, including granting regulatory powers to the ATDT and addressing institutional structure concerns.
- What changes have been acknowledged and incorporated into the legislative proposal? The ATDT’s authority to temporarily block digital platforms and the establishment of a subordinate regulatory body with fixed-term commissioners.
- How does the Constitution clarify regulatory powers in telecommunications and broadcasting sectors? The federal executive, through the competition and free market authority, will exclusively exercise economic competition powers to asymmetrically regulate these sectors.
- What issues remain unresolved in the Telecommunications and Broadcasting Law initiative? Violations of Article 28 concerning the distribution of competencies between the new authority and the regulatory body, as well as correcting the IFT’s definitive extinction timeline.
