OTT isn't replacing pay-TV in Mexico


Details

Juan Fernandez Gonzalez

| 12 October 2015





Over-the-top (OTT) video platforms such as Netflix and Clarovideo aren't taking the place of pay-TV in Mexico, according to the country's Instituto Federal de Telecomunicaciones (IFT).


Following recent figures indicating that viewers are choosing OTT as a complement to pay-TV, the IFT has decided to enter the debate around whether OTT should have the same regulations as telcos or pay-TV operators.

"OTT players are focused on offering audiovisual content which has mostly already been premiered through other platforms, such as theatres, video stores or pay-TV," said the Mexican regulator in a statement.

"Secondly, OTT platforms don't offer linear programming and don't own high ratings channels like pay-TV players do. And OTT depends on broadband connections, which in Mexico are not always fast and stable," meaning there is less access than for pay-TV.

Still, in the largest Spanish-speaking pay-TV market, viewers seem to be emulating habits from the US, slowly cutting the cord as video streaming services are becoming more popular and Internet connections are improving across the country.