Sistema Público de Radiodifusión del Estado Mexicano
The Sistema Público de Radiodifusión del Estado Mexicano (SPR, English: Mexican State Public Broadcasting System), known as Organismo Promotor de Medios Audiovisuales (OPMA, English: Broadcast Media Promotion Organization) until 2014, is an independent Mexican government agency. Its mission is to support the development of public television in the country and increase its national reach; it carries this goal out through ownership of a nationwide network of transmitters and the operation of its own public television network. The agency was established by a decree published on March 31, 2010.
History
By 2010, two major public television stations existed in Mexico: the Instituto Politécnico Nacional's Canal Once, Conaculta's Canal 22. In addition, the low-powered test signal XHUNAM-TDT channel 20 and the teveunam pay TV network, owned by the largest public university in Mexico, UNAM, had been in operation since 2000 and 2005, respectively. However, not all of these stations, especially Canal 22 and teveunam, had national coverage outside of pay television services. None of them had a general national reach above 30%. Even then, major cities, including Guadalajara and Monterrey, were not in Canal Once's signal footprint.
OPMA was established with the mission of ensuring that more Mexicans could receive a wider range of public television signals. Indeed, when the first four OPMA transmitters took to the air on July 12, 2010, national coverage for Canal Once (then known as Once TV México) jumped from 28 to 42%; it is now at 66%.
The 2014 Mexican telecommunications reform transformed OPMA into SPR, effective August 13, 2014. At the same time, the system became an independent agency no longer under the auspices of the Secretariat of the Interior (SEGOB).
On August 26, 2015, the IFT awarded the SPR concessions for seven new TV stations and two radio stations.[1]
Television network
SPR's flagship television network, Una Voz con Todos (A Voice for All), abbreviated as UVTV, broadcasts documentaries and other programs. Its programming is designed to strengthen the democratic values of Mexican society.
Television transmitters
SPR's transmitter network currently covers 56% of the Mexican population. The flagship station is XHOPMA-TDT, channel 30 in Mexico City:[2]
Transmitters on the air
| Digital channel | Callsign | City |
|---|---|---|
| 43 | XHOPGA | Guadalajara, Jalisco |
| 35 | XHOPXA | Xalapa/Las Lajas, Veracruz |
| 44 | XHOPMO | Morelia, Michoacán |
| 46 | XHOPCA | Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz |
| 51 | XHOPMT | Monterrey, Nuevo León |
| 23 | XHOPME | Mérida, Yucatán |
| 35 | XHOPOA | Oaxaca, Oaxaca |
| 34 | XHOPLA | León, Guanajuato |
| 20 | XHOPCE | Celaya, Guanajuato |
| 27 | XHOPHA | Hermosillo, Sonora |
| 31 | XHOPOS | Ciudad Obregón, Sonora |
| 35 | XHOPTA | Tampico, Tamaulipas |
| 47 | XHOPAG | Aguascalientes, Aguascalientes |
| 30 | XHOPMA | Mexico City |
| 30 | XHOPEM | Toluca, México |
| 30 | XHOPMQ | Querétaro, Querétaro |
| 42 | XHOPTP | Tapachula, Chiapas |
| 30 | XHOPPA | Puebla, Puebla |
| 38 | XHOPVT | Villahermosa, Tabasco |
| 32 | XHOPCC | Campeche, Campeche |
| 51 | XHOPSC | San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas |
| 31 | XHOPTC | Tuxtla Gutiérrez, Chiapas |
| 41 | XHOPCO | Colima, Colima |
| 44 | XHOPUM | Uruapan, Michoacán |
| 41 | XHOPMS | Mazatlán, Sinaloa |
| 47 | XHOPZC | Zacatecas, Zacatecas |
Transmitters under construction
These transmitters were part of the 2015 concession package:
| Digital channel | Callsign | City |
|---|---|---|
| 34 | XHSPY-TDT | Tepic, Nayarit |
| 31 | XHSPB-TDT | La Paz, Baja California Sur |
| 30 | XHSPG-TDT | Acapulco, Guerrero |
| 25 | XHSPJ-TDT | Chetumal, Quintana Roo |
| 29 | XHSPQ-TDT | Cancún, Quintana Roo |
| 22 | XHSPO-TDT | Torreón, Coahuila |
| 23 | XHSPS-TDT | San Luis Potosí, San Luis Potosí |
Other SPR relay transmitters
In October 2015, SPR signed a contract with Grupo Intermedia, owner of XHILA-TDT and XHIJ-TDT, in order to expand the coverage of Una Voz con Todos into Mexicali and Ciudad Juárez, neither of which had ever had national public television service.[3] While the SPR prefers to build its own transmitters, the length of time needed to obtain a concession, as well as spectrum availability in the border markets, makes a subchannel plan more effective.
| Subchannel | City |
|---|---|
| XHILA-TDT 66.2 | Mexicali, Baja California |
| XHIJ-TDT 44.3 | Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua |
Radio stations
The SPR received its first radio concessions in 2015.
| Callsign | Frequency | City |
|---|---|---|
| XHSPRT-FM | 101.1 MHz | Tapachula, Chiapas |
| XHSPRM-FM | 103.5 MHz | Mazatlán, Sinaloa |
Digital multiplex
Except for XHOPMA, most of these stations carry (or will carry) a multiplex of at least five channels. The established Canal Once, Once Niños, Canal 22 and teveunam are joined by Una Voz con Todos and also by Ingenio TV, an educational service of the Secretariat of Public Education:
| Subchannel | Programming |
|---|---|
| X.1 | Canal Once |
| X.2 | Una Voz Con Todos |
| X.3 | Canal 22 |
| X.4 | Ingenio TV |
| X.5 | TV UNAM |
Third-wave SPR transmitters carry a similar multiplex, except with Una Voz con Todos on the .1 subchannel and Canal Once on the .2, as well as Canal del Congreso as a .6 subchannel.
Some stations have been switched to drop Ingenio TV, switch Una Voz con Todos with Canal Once and broadcast both in HD.
As XEIPN and XEIMT have their own digital channels, XHOPMA's multiplex is different:
| Subchannel | Programming |
|---|---|
| 30.1 | Una Voz Con Todos |
| 30.2 | TV UNAM |
| 30.4 | Ingenio TV |
References
- ^ IFT Comunicado: El Pleno del IFT resolvió otorgar concesiones de uso público al sistema de radiodifusión del Estado mexicano para los servicios de radio y televisión en varias ciudades del país, 26 August 2015
- ^ Instituto Federal de Telecomunicaciones. Infraestructura de Estaciones de TDT. Last modified 2018-05-16. Retrieved 2014-07-02. Technical information from the IFT Coverage Viewer.
- ^ Lucas, Nicolás (2015-10-20). "TV pública llega a frontera de la mano de privados". El Economista. Retrieved 2015-10-20.
