Spain’s Telefónica will be free at the end of this month of the commitments it made in the provision of TV services when it acquired Sogecable’s DTH operation DTS in 2015.
El Economista reports that the incumbent will be able to choose whether to share or not share its differential offers with its rivals, without being obliged to provide a wholesale offer for premium content from its catalogue, such as La Liga, Champions League and World Cup matches, as well as other events such as Formula 1, the Moto GP World Cup or the Olympic Games, in addition to exclusive premiere movies and series.
In practice this will mean that it will be able to compete on equal terms with Orange TV and Vodafone TV, without the regulator CNMC having to protect the interests of third parties.
The resale prices of the audiovisual rights of Movistar content also will no longer be regulated.
However, quoting market sources, El Economista adds that the status quo is likely to remain.
Indeed, Telefónica will probably continue to sell the football rights to currently holds.
