Peru launches consultation on OTT, content provider regulations

Peruvian telecoms regulator Osiptel launched a consultation process on a potential framework to regulate content providers and over-the-top (OTT) services and applications, matching their obligations to those of telecom operators.

Comments may be submitted through October 16 via gestion-dprc@osiptel.gob.pe. Further information can be accessed here, in Spanish. 

The consultation centers on “the need to evaluate the operation of over-the-top services in Peru and the possibility of regulatory intervention.”

The watchdog said that services such as traditional pay-TV are losing appeal to streaming services.

“This situation requires an evaluation of the OTT services market, as it could present a certain degree of substitution with the pay-TV service, which could make it necessary to evaluate the current situation of OTT services at the national level,” the consultation document said.

Osiptel added that content companies do not face the same "regulatory burden" as pay-TV operators and acknowledged that pay-TV companies have entered the OTT market, both through their own streaming services and partnerships.

But the situation raises issues related to direct responsibility for user support, among others.

“In this regard, when faced with problems in both types of services, users turn to the operating company, which is obliged to provide support. However, it should be noted that the obligation to provide support responds to different regulations,” Osiptel said.

BASE 

Peru's pay-TV market is led by the Telefónica group, with 51% of subscriptions in Q2. At its peak in 2016, Telefónica had a 66% share.

The second biggest pay-TV operator in the country is DirecTV, with a 19% share. The company's participation has grown by just 5% in nine years. 

Third is the América Móvil group, with 15%. In 2018, América Móvil held 8%.

A survey by Ipsos Perú found that video streaming reached 84% of the population in 2023, and that each user subscribes to three platforms simultaneously on average. The most used platforms were YouTube, Netflix, Facebook, Disney+ and Amazon Prime Video.

Meanwhile, the government's 2022 residential survey on telecom services, with the latest data available, found that 94% of internet users were members of social networks and used instant messaging applications.

Furthermore, 53% used applications to make voice calls over IP, such as Skype, WhatsApp or Facebook, and 39% accessed streaming services.

The survey also said that the percentage of people who used electronic banking applications, another type of OTT service, had doubled between 2018 and 2022.