Telecom, whose greatest shareholder is the Clarín Group, specified on Monday the purchase of the Argentine subsidiary of Telefónica. With the confirmation of the transfer, Telecom won other large companies that were interested in keeping the actions of Telefónica, including DirecTV (Werthein Group, Government’s Allied), Telecentro (from Alberto Pierri) and Claro. The operation was carried out for USD 1245 million and thanks to it personal would concentrate 40 million active mobile telephone lines.
This is bad news for the government that has just broken the mutual unconditional defense relationship with the Clarín Group, after the TN channel published Jonathan Viale’s interview to Javier Milei without editing. In the video he was exposed as the presidential advisor, Santiago Caputo, interrupted the recording to get Milei out of an awkward situation in relation to the scam of the $ LIBRA cryptocurrency.
From the president’s office they issued a statement stating that through the “National Communications Entity (ENACOM) and the National Competition Commission (CNDC)“ they will evaluate the operation. “This acquisition,” the statement continued, “could leave approximately 70% of telecommunications services in the hands of a single economic group, which would generate a monopoly.” “If so, the National State will take all relevant measures to avoid it,” said the presidency of Javier Milei. While guiding these decisions “to guarantee the right of choice of users, free competition and accessibility to telecommunication services,” concluded the presidential statement.
The argument is at least striking, if we take into account that Milei repeats in almost all his speeches the benefits that monopolies generate for capitalism and deals with idiots to those who do not share this vision. The government reaction is not due to an unprecedented concern for consumers or business concentration, but by the power and public opinion dispute with the largest media group in the country.
Clarín’s advance and media fights
To make the purchase of Telecom had the BBVA as an advisor to the transaction, which was also part of those who financed it together with the Deutsche Bank, Santander and the ICBC with two loans for a total of USD 1,170 million. In this way, if the government really seeks to prevent the operation, it will not only collide with the multim average but also with the interests of heavyweights of international banks.
The tendency to monopoly in capitalism, as Milei himself states, is inevitable and difficult to delay. Clarín’s story is a good example, since the group was questioned in recent decades for buying Radio Miter, acquiring Channel 13, carrying out the fusion between Cablevisión and Multicanal (guaranteed by Néstor Kirchner) and more recently becoming a majority of Telecom. Having had as a previous milestone the appropriation of the press paper with the complicity of the genocidal dictatorship. But either with an open complicity of governments or with hard speeches against them, the concentration has not stopped increasing.
The company plans to continue on the same way. In the press release in which they report the purchase of Telefónica they affirm that to the purchase: “In the coming years intensive capital investments, with focus on the deployment and capillarity of fiber optics throughout the territory covered by the company , in the deployment of 5G mobile sites in the same areas and in the expansion of value -added services such as Video On Demand, Internet of Things, Corporate Products, Fintech, e-commerce, artificial intelligence and cloud services ”.
It remains to be seen if Milei decides to enter an open confrontation with the Clarín group (inevitably bringing memories of Kirchnerism) or if he is only hitting to renegotiate the conditions of the relationship with Magnetto and company. But the news undoubtedly adds an important problem to the government at its time of greatest political weakness since its assumption.
Source: www.laizquierdadiario.com
