Mexico’s anti-trust regulator, the Federal Competition Commission (CFC) has reaffirmed an earlier ruling that America Movil’s Telcel – the country’s mobile market leader – enjoys a dominant market position, reports Telecompaper. After analysing the arguments presented by Telcel claiming that it did not deploy any anti-competitive practices, the CFC upheld its ruling of 28 October, citing the operator’s large market share (in terms of both subscribers and revenue) and its high levels of profit gained in recent years. It also noted Telcel’s advantage over its competitors due to its large coverage and extensive distribution network. The CFC’s decision will likely pave the way for the Mexican telecoms regulator (Cofetel) to establish so-called ‘asymmetrical regulation’ designed to reduce Telcel’s power.

According to Wireless Intelligence figures, Telcel has over a 72 percent share of Mexico’s mobile market and is the only operator in the country to have rolled out 3G services to date. However, Cofetel is hoping that the 3G spectrum auctions currently underway in the country will lead to new market entrants that could challenge Telcel’s dominance. As well as the country’s existing mobile operators (Telcel, Telefonica, Grupo Iusacell and NII Holdings), other players understood to be looking at acquiring spectrum include fixed-line operators Axtel and Maxcom Comunicaciones; media conglomerate Grupo Televisa; the country’s No.2 broadcaster TV Azteca; and cable TV operator Megacable Holding.