Regulatory watch: CFE-Altán deal conditions, ICT minister resigns, roaming regulations and more

CFE-Altán deal

Mexico’s public utility CFE must comply with certain conditions to be allowed to acquire indirectly a 23.1% stake in wholesale mobile services provider Altán Redes. 

The conditions are aimed at safeguarding competition and include a prohibition to exchange information between the companies and the obligation to process all requests for access to telecoms services in non-discriminatory terms. 

Altán operates the 700MHz shared network, offering wholesale 4G services for more than 100 mobile virtual network operators. CFE provides access to passive infrastructure, as well as retail services for mobile telephony and internet access on a non-profit basis. 

Regulator IFT also requires CFE to return its wholesale commercial concession, so it ceases to be a telecoms service provider. 

Likewise, the conditions established in the concession titles of Altán and CFE Telecomunicaciones e Internet para Todos related to the objective of preserving the principle of neutral competition are maintained.

Colombia’s ICT minister resigns 

Colombia’s ICT minister Mauricio Lizcano has resigned.

“We worked tirelessly to make Colombia a digital power, connecting more than 3mn people, training more than 1mn Colombians in digital skills and bringing technology and innovation to the most remote regions,” he wrote on X. 

“We traveled around Colombia, brought and developed 5G technology for the country, installed 2,375 antennas and delivered more than 100,000 computers to students from small educational institutions”, he added.

Lizcano is mulling to run for president in the next elections. 

Roaming regulation 

Brazilian regulator Anatel is reviewing its roaming regulations to guarantee telecoms services along highways. 

The proposed regulation also ensures that spectrum auction investment commitments are met efficiently, promoting coverage expansion and a better user experience.

The draft regulation can be accessed here. 

New capabilities 

Anatel doubled its processing capacity with the expansion of server infrastructure and software updates. Processing capacity of the data website grew by 33%.

The new capabilities positively impact the agency’s work on regulations, market monitoring, consumer protection and support for public policies. 

Anatel uses QlickSense as the main data analysis tool. 

Universal fund

Argentine regulator Enacom resolved that operators must continue to comply with the 1% contribution to the universal fund, in line with the present mechanism, even though the government eliminated the fund. 

But in the resolution, Enacom said the contributions should continue until complementary legislation is enacted to complete the fund’s liquidation.

Public consultations

Colombian regulator CRC extended the deadline for receiving comments on the regulatory proposal regarding the promotion of connectivity and competition in the data service market to January 30.

More information can be found here. 

CRC also extended the deadline for submitting comments on the regulatory proposal for fixed community internet services. The new deadline is February 6. 

The project seeks to strengthen connectivity communities as key actors in reducing the digital divide. 

Related documents are available here.