Mexican Media Moguls on the Brink: The Downfall of Televisa and Azteca, and the Billionaires Caught in the Crossfire
The crisis of the two major TV stations in Mexico was no longer just an economic one. Televisa and Tv Azteca are going through legal and credibility problems due to accusations that weigh directly on their owners: Emilio Azcárraga and Ricardo Salinas.
Mexico City, November 1 (However).- The two historic TV stations in Mexico, Televisa and Azteca Televisionadd problems and arguments that are already taking their toll on their accounts. The crisis is no longer just political and credibility, it also affects the families that have ruled them for decades, namely the Azcárraga and the Salinas Pliegoin that order.
The problems are not only with the audiences, who in recent years have stopped using the content they produce, but in recent weeks a new factor has come in, which is justice in USA. In the case of Televisa, the company is going through problems related to an accusation of corruption and in the situation of TV Azteca, the position of its owner is affected by not complying with its tax obligations. Electra with international rating agencies.
Emilio Azcárraga Jean and Ricardo Salinas Pliego a few years ago. Photo: Iván Méndez, Cuartoscuro
That is, this no longer results from the changes that the business has had or the conditions of the government, because in the latest financial reports of the television stations, when talking about the economic crises they are going through, there has been for them to argue over arrival streaming and the decline in official advertising contracts with state and federal governments.
Both companies have enjoyed concessions for the exploitation of frequency bands for decades. And at least in the short term they have no reason to worry about their current license as they were issues that were discussed and resolved days before the end of Enrique Peña Nieto’s administration. In the case Azteca TV, On November 16, 2018, he requested an extension to his concession, it was granted to take effect on January 1, 2022 and will expire until January 1, 2042.
Televisa did the same and on November 2, 2018, informed the Mexican Stock Exchange that the IFT approved the renewal of the concessions for its channels Las Estrellas, Canal 5, Canal 9, Foro TV and several local channels, for a period of time of 20 years from the scheduled expiry date. These licenses will also expire in 2042.
Little is known about the underlying arguments, but one of the main reasons for both companies to hold concessions and official advertising contracts is the penetration of television into homes in Mexico. Data from the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (Inegi) show that Televisa and Azteca Television reached 93.2 percent of the total number of households in Mexico, which are the most powerful channels. The Stars, Channel 5, Channel 9, Television Forum and Azteca Uno, Azteca Siete and ADN 40.
In the case of Televisa, there is separation Emilio Azcarraga Jean from his position as Executive President to face an investigation in the United States for corruption of officials of the International Federation of Football Associations (FIFA), caused investors to punish his actions on the second day of their negotiations. This information was published by the TV station on the closing of the Mexican Stock Exchange (BMV) last Thursday, October 24, and since Friday the 25th the prices of its securities have been falling.
Shares of the telecommunications, broadcasting and entertainment company started Monday’s trading session with a loss of 3.20 percent and recovered in the middle of the session. However, so far this year they have fallen by 25.34 percent, reaching a maximum price of 11.80 pesos and a minimum of 6.87 pesos, which occurred on the morning of September 5.
Enrique Peña Nieto and Azcárraga Jean: a close relationship. Picture: Cuartoscuro
Since last August, and also in a report to its investors, the group accepted that the investigation could affect its finances and, in the light of its financial condition, this has been the case. In its report for the third quarter of 2024, its income decreased to 15,362.8 million pesos, compared to 16,416 million in the third quarter of 2023.
In the case of Azteca TV, it is about the fight that Ricardo Salinas Pliego maintains with the federal government by refusing to pay 61 billion pesos derived from taxes, benefits that he always received from the governments in power.
Last week, Grupo Elektra, one of the Salinas companies, received two bad news in less than 24 hours: first, the rating agency Standard & Poor’s put it in a speculative grade given that it faces financial crises that could worsen during the Next 12 months and the BMV said it has suspended trading of its shares, a day after enabling it.
The rating agency assigned a “BB” issuer credit rating, with a negative outlook, to Grupo Elektra and warned that it could drop to two more levels due to the “contingencies” it faces. Among those risks mentioned by S&P Global Ratings are several disputes that the tycoon Ricardo Salinas Pliego’s company has with the Tax Administration Service (SAT) for the payment of taxes from past years and the outcome of which remains is uncertain.
“In our view, the timing and potential outcome of these disputes remains uncertain at this time. “We will be following closely how these disputes evolve, particularly those relating to the 2008 and 2013 financial years, which are pending in the Nation’s Supreme Court of Justice,” the agency said. rating
WHAT IS FIFA GATE?
One of the latest scandals of Television This was the so-called FIFA Gate, where the company was sentenced to pay 95 million dollars, after it was sued by an American investor for bribing FIFA officials to obtain the rights to broadcast the World Cup in 2018, 2022, 2026 and 2030.
Although the scandal dates back to 2017, the TV station has so far informed its investors about the investigation it is subject to and the possible financial repercussions.
According to an investigation by the US Department of Justice, during a judicial process, a witness claimed that one of the company’s subsidiaries had made inappropriate payments to FIFA officials.
In 2023, the Mexican media company agreed to pay $95 million to settle a class action shareholder lawsuit. According to the plaintiffs, quoted by the media Investthe bribery charges had affected the value of the shares of Televisionas they would have artificially inflated the value of their US-traded ADRs.
Television has rejected these accusations, maintaining his position of not being involved in any irregular practices.
THE MILLIONS OF DEBT
On March 17, SinEmbargo published an investigation by the journalist Álvaro Delgado where it was possible to put an amount on the famous debt of Salinas Pliego with the SAT; The amount corresponds to a third of his fortune: more than 67 billion pesos.
Only at the end of his term, former president Andrés Manuel López Obrador launched a strong criticism of the owner of Tv Azteca. Photo: Andrea Murcia, Cuartoscuro
Salinas Pliego has the 26,800 million pesos in taxes that the then President Andrés Manuel López Obrador revealed, on March 5, when he offered him a reduction of 8 billion so that he could pay it, an offer that was rejected by the head, but what he owes the treasury the equivalent of another 40,289 million pesos.
That is, Salinas Pliego has not paid the TAS a total of 67,170 million pesos, according to figures from the Federal Prosecutor’s Office (PFF), but with updates in five years the amount is estimated to be more than 73,000 600 million pesos.
These are 13 tax credits from Grupo Elektra and TV Azteca that Salinas Pliego is litigating in the Judiciary since the governments of Calderón and Enrique Peña Nieto, an amount that exceeds the 60 billion pesos of public debt that Alfredo del Mazo inherited to the State of Mexico. and more than three times Baja California Sur’s budget for 2024.
Daniela Barragan
He is a journalist from UNAM, with expertise in politics from Carlos Septién. The last few years have been devoted to data journalism, with an emphasis on issues of poverty, inequality, transparency and gender.