Competition in the 
Broadcast Television Marketplace

Latin America is going through a liberalization process in which many government institutions are being privatized and competition is being phased into previously regulated arenas.  Liberalization has not been restricted just to the telecommunications, petroleum, mineral, airline and automotive industries.  Just as visible are the effects of the opening of the broadcast television.

Obviously, these developments differ across countries because of pre-existing situational differences.  In some countries, the broadcast television market has always been primarily commercial in nature and highly competitive (e.g. Puerto Rico).  In other cases, previously government-owned channels were auctioned off (e.g. TV Azteca in Mexico) to raise funds and to encourage competition.  Still, in other cases, new licenses were issued (e.g. Rock y Pop in Chile; and, in 1998, the new RCN and Caracol networks in Colombia).  Finally, media ownership regulations have been relaxed so that foreign investors can enter (e.g. Chilevisión and Megavisión in Chile).

Yet, the infusion of new players does not automatically guarantee a competitive and viable marketplace.  First of all, can the marketplace support all the players, both old and new?  Is there enough revenue (primarily from advertising, plus some government subsidy) to support everybody?  Second, can the new players compete effectively against the established players?  Will they be caught in a vicious cycle between lower revenues and poorer programming?

In Table 1 below, we show the share of viewing for broadcast networks in seven Latin American countries.  These data came from the Los Medios y Mercados de Latinoamérica study.  The reader can find out more about these networks through their links on our Broadcast TV page.

Table 1. Average weekly share of viewing for broadcast networks
among Persons 12-64

Country/Network Share of Viewing
Argentina
     Telefé
     América
     Artear
     Libertad
     ATC

32%
18%
15%
12%
  8%
Brazil
     Globo
     SBT
     Bandeirantes
     Manchete
     TV Cultura

58%
24%
  8%
  5%
  2%
Chile
     Universidad Católica de Chile
     TVN
     Megavisión
     Chilevisión
     La Red
     Rock y Pop

32%
32%
18%
10%
  3%
  3%
Colombia
     Canal A
     Canal Uno
     Canal Tres (now Señal Colombia)

41%
39%
11%
Mexico
     Canal 2 (Televisa)
     Canal 13 (TV Azteca)
     Canal 5 (Televisa)
     Canal 7 (TV Azteca)
     Canal 9 (Televisa)
     Canal 4 (Televisa)

26%
20%
17%
16%
  9%
  7%
Puerto Rico
     Teleonce
     Telemundo
     WAPA TV
     Supersiete
     Teveseis

31%
28%
22%
  9%
  9%
Venezuela
     Venevisión
     RCTV
     Televen
     Venezolana

39%
37%
11%
  9%

(Source: Los Medios y Mercados de Latinoamérica 1997)

On a country-by-country basis, we make the following observations:

We recognize that competition does not have to be defined narrowly as a head-on battle for the total audience.  Sometimes, it is much easier and more profitable to target specific segments of the population.  For example, in Brazil, SBT has more successes among teens (with a 33% share), helped by its business relationship with the Disney company.  Similarly, in Mexico, Televisa's Canal 5 is targeted towards youngsters and has a 22% share among teens, compared to 17% in the general population.  In Brazil, TV Cultura has a 5% share among persons in SES Level A, compared to 2% in the general population.

Technical note: We note that our share estimates may be somewhat different from those implied by the ratings services, for a number of reasons.  Our numbers are based upon survey data taken during a specific time period (August to October, 1997).   As such, there may be memory effects as well as seasonal differences.  More importantly, our surveys are based upon national samples, whereas the ratings services tend to be done only in the major cities.

(by Roland Soong, 8/17/98)


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