Federal Telecommunications Institute
| Instituto Federal de Telecomunicaciones IFT |
|
| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | September 10, 2013 |
| Preceding agency | |
| Jurisdiction | Federal government of Mexico |
| Headquarters | Insurgentes Sur 1143, Benito Juárez, Col. Nochebuena, 03720 Mexico City, Mexico 19°22′55″N 99°10′36″W / 19.3818488°N 99.1767167°WCoordinates: 19°22′55″N 99°10′36″W / 19.3818488°N 99.1767167°W |
| Annual budget | MX$2,000,000,000.00 (two thousand million of pesos00/100 M.N.) |
| Agency executive |
|
| Website | ift |
The Federal Telecommunications Institute (abbreviated as IFT and incorrectly referred to as IFETEL) is an independent government agency of Mexico charged with the regulation of telecommunications and broadcasting services. It was formed on September 10, 2013, as part of larger reforms to Mexican telecom regulations, and replaced the Federal Telecommunications Commission (Cofetel).
The current President of the IFT is Gabriel Oswaldo Contreras Saldívar.
On August 8, 1996, President Ernesto Zedillo created Cofetel, which originally was based in the tower of the Secretariat of Communications and Transportation.
In 2013, President Enrique Peña Nieto created the IFT to replace Cofetel as part of the telecommunications reform package of the Pacto por México. The IFT is an autonomous federal agency that is responsible for the regulation of the use of spectrum, telecommunications and broadcasting networks and offerings, and access to infrastructure. IFT also regulates the awarding of concessions and permits for broadcast stations and promotes and protects competition in telecommunications.
Through an agreement with PROFECO, the IFT also handles user comments and complaints for communications services.
The IFT is headed by a board of seven commissioners, including a Chair. They are each nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate.
The sitting commissioners are:
Red Compartida (Red Shared) is the official name of the network that will result from the Mexican Government's 2014-2016 effort to overhaul its telecommunications industry by introducing competition into the marketplace. If successful, the Red Compartida network will be the first fully wholesale mobile network deployed anywhere in the world.
America Movil, the company owned by Carlos Slim, the world’s richest man, has long held a monopoly in the telecommunications marketplace in Mexico. In July 2014, it was reported in Forbes Magazine that Slim controlled 80% of Mexico’s landline market and 70% of the wireless market. According to the Los Angeles Times, Mexican consumers have long been complaining at the “high costs and spotty service” provided by Slim’s companies. Over the years, Slim has been accused of engaging in anti-competitive practices – for example, using his control over the telecommunications infrastructure to charge prohibitive connection fees to competitors.
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