Ecuador’s antitrust regulator has suspended contracts of leading operators which entitles them to exclusive access to land for their towers.
America Movil and Telefonica – which together hold close to 98% of the wireless market – will have to…
Ecuador’s antitrust regulator has suspended contracts of leading operators which entitles them to exclusive access to land for their towers.
America Movil and Telefonica – which together hold close to 98% of the wireless market – will have to renegotiate the contracts, the Superintendencia de Control del Poder de Mercado said in a statement.
The new terms would allow smaller operators access to the sites so that they can expand their coverage. The regulator said this measure would increase competition and give consumers a wider choice.
The only other significant operator in Ecuador is government owned CNT Mobile, which has 2% market share.
At a press conference in Quito the head of the regulator told reporters that dominant telcos will be able to appeal the decisions on the estimated 2,000 contracts on a case-by-case basis, Bloomberg reported.
Several countries across the region have launched regulatory crack downs on telcos in recent months. It follows legislation in Mexico to curb monopolies in telecoms, which received final approval from the country’s congress this week. Meanwhile in Colombia dominant operator America Movil is partially excluded from the country’s upcoming 4G auction and in Brazil the regulator is coming down hard on operators for poor service and not meeting coverage targets.
