3.2. Estimated costs per television operator/channel

By applying the annual cost per Mbps estimated for 2013 on the basis of CAS results, and taking into account the capacity allocated in accordance with Table 3, the following costs allocated to television operators/channels and MEO are estimated:

Table 4. Costs allocated to television operators and MEO taking into account the capacity allocated in accordance with Table 3 and annual cost per Mbps estimated for 2013 on the basis of CAS results

[BCI] 

Values in thousand Euros
[ECI]

The cost per television operator/channel thus obtained (that is, taking into account the current state of occupation of MUX A and costs for 2013 without taking into account negative margins of previous years) exceeds the price currently charged by MEO to television operators.

As such, in the current situation (that is, taking into account the current state of occupation of MUX A and costs for 2013 without taking into account negative margins of previous years), only in scenarios where more than 80% of such costs were allocated to MEO would the price currently charged exceed cost. Consequently, in a context of uncertainty as to the accurate definition of cost allocation of spare capacity, there is no doubt that a price intervention is not justified at this time.

It is thus concluded that the price currently charged by MEO to television operators is cost-oriented, taking into account the cost estimated for 2013 and the adopted capacity allocation, and as such, there are no grounds for an intervention on the part of ANACOM in the scope of DTT prices.

In other words, excessive prices are not being currently charged, an assumption which could lead ANACOM to conclude that obvious signs of a violation of competition law or of any other legal provision exist, as a result of which contracts concluded would be non-existent or invalid.
In case the starting point was deemed to be, not the annual cost per Mbps estimated for 2013, but the annual price of 885,100€ per Mbps specified in the (variant) proposal presented by MEO in the scope of the public tender for allocation of a right of use for frequencies of a national scope for the provision of the DTT service, prices per channel, taking into account the capacity allocated in accordance with Table 3, would be as follows:

Table 5. Costs allocated to television operators and MEO taking into account the capacity allocated in accordance with Table 3 and annual price of 885,100€ per Mbps

[BCI] 

Values in thousand Euros
[ECI]

In this case, the price currently charged to television operators exceeds very slightly (by around 1%) the price resulting from MEO’s tender proposal. Without prejudice, it must be referred that in a perspective of cost-orientation of prices, the conditions concerning MEO’s tender proposal, namely the price, cease to be an appropriate reference.

The conclusions of the previous section are valid taking into account the current market situation, in terms of the number of active television operators, of costs, and of the existing spare capacity, and for as long as no changes occur as regards the spare capacity.

In this scope, reference must be made to the public consultation report drawn up by ANACOM and by ERC in 2014, on DTT evolution¹.

As such, prices charged to television operators may require a cut, in a perspective of cost-orientation of prices, as spare capacity of MUX A is occupied or costs decrease, in the light of price analysis methodologies deemed to be more appropriate to be taken into consideration in a future decision, bearing in mind that the principle of cost-orientation of prices may only be imposed further to a market analysis.