Mexico: Gov’t makes $10B push to take on Telcel dominance

Mexico has pumping $10 billion into a new wireless broadband infrastructure project aimed at taking on the nation’s dominant carrier Telcel, owned by media tycoon Carlos Slim.

According to reports, President Enrique Peña Nieto is pushing to overhaul the nation’s wireless industry, which is dominated by Slim’s America Movil and Telecel. Together, reports say the companies control 70 percent of the market.

The government now plans to establish a new network as an independent “carrier of carriers” to challenge the dominance of America Movil and Telcel. The new company would not be allowed to provide service directly to customers, but instead can lend its network to competing wireless providers, reports say.

The project is a massive undertaking, experts say, and relies on complex litigation and uncharted regulatory territory.

According to reports, the government is accepting bids to build the infrastructure in February, and plans to choose a winner next August.

Full content: The Yucatan Times

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