Once again, the monopolistic practices ghost is hovering over the consumers of mass communication products as it's almost confirmed that Mexican authorities will approve the merge between Disney , the owner of ESPN , and Fox , owner of Fox Sports , in Mexico . This time, those affected will be the viewers who are sports fans , who will not only resent the birth of a giant that will broadcast their favorites sports, but because it will also impact their economy as it will imply an increase in the prices of cable TV because, according to the Telecommunications Rights Institute (IDET) , the agglomeration of licenses and rights by one permit holder will drive it to move its content to exclusive channels and platforms that will cost the viewer extra, when this content was previously offered as part of basic packages.
In this sense, a group of Senators is asking the Federal Telecommunications Institute (IFT) and the Federal Economic Competition Commission (Cofece) that the merge between both companies is not taken lightly and that its possible implications are analyzed in detail and with wariness.
It's widely-known that soccer is the most popular sport in Mexico . It's been calculated that up to 58% of Mexicans are interested in watching soccer games regularly, especially matches from the Mexican soccer league , but also matches between teams in Europe and South America .
The Senators supervising commercial merges explain that the merge between Disney and Fox will shut out the Mexican fans with fewer resources from enjoying the matches between their favorite teams as Fox holds the exclusive rights of five from the 18 teams from the Liga Mx: Monterrey, Santos, León, Pachuca, and Tijuana .
In Mexico , this type of capitalism has taken place without any counterweights, which is one of the reasons why corruption takes place in these type of businesses . The creation of autonomous institutes such as the Cofece and the IFT is meant to be a barrier against de facto power , represented by big companies, but their actions are far from efficient. It's expected that they will act, as it would become an emblematic case of private power stopped by the common interest, represented by the government , Nevertheless, the autonomous institutes have disappointed and this is the reason they are at risks during the 4th Transformation . It's time to take a risk and implement the necessary measures.
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