However, this type of telecommunications cable is a material up to ten times more expensive than copper, which in turn implies greater costs for its installation, such as repair, as it requires specialized labor because it is a delicate material.
Analysts consulted by Expansion They agreed that telecommunications companies will pass on the extra cost of fiber optics to users to avoid impacts on their financial statements, especially those operators that still maintain the strategy of deploying more kilometers of fiber to improve their services.
“Inflationary pressures persist in the country and these types of decisions have an impact on the costs and profitability of companies. One of the ways operators can solve it is through tariffs or reduction of other costs within the companies,” warned Brian Rodríguez, analyst at Monex Grupo Financiero, in an interview.
Expansion requested information from Megacable, Totalplay and Izzi about the implications of the new prices for fiber optics, but until the publication of the text they did not comment.
Fixed service companies such as Megacable, Izzi, Totalplay, among others, since 2020 have allocated significant investments to replace their copper to fiber network in order to improve user connectivity services, but executing this strategy has resulted in increases of tariffs on their products to recover the capital injections they have invested in this input. Telmex is the only operator that has frozen its internet rates since 2020.
This year alone, fixed service companies such as Totalplay, Izzi and Megacable have incurred rate increases of up to 50 pesos, but the new increase in the price of fiber could considerably increase rates.
The experts consulted by this means regretted that the government, through its Economy department, places obstacles to the development of the country’s connectivity. And the new tax will translate into greater complexities for Mexicans to access internet services, especially for those with fewer economic resources.
According to information from the National Survey on Availability and Use of Information Technologies in Homes (ENDUTIH) 2022, users have reduced their spending on connectivity services by 30% because they have prioritized their spending on essential products such as the basic basket.
While the Centro México Digital revealed that in that year 1.3% of fixed internet users decided to cancel their subscription.
The International Telecommunications Union (ITU), the body in charge of regulating the industry at an international level, has ensured that connectivity services should not exceed 2% of users’ monthly income. But in Mexico, people with greater purchasing power spend on average 2.5% of their monthly money on telecommunications, while those with lower purchasing power invest up to 10% of their monthly money, and now spending could increase with the new prices that could apply companies.
“It is incredible that the Government is not enough for the cost of the radio spectrum, now also for the elements of passive infrastructure. I think the government is making a mistake and this will have consequences for the state of connectivity and the objective of closing the digital divide,” said Jorge Moreno Loza, lawyer specialized in telecommunications and leader of the Expanzione firm.
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