UPDATE: Argentina Supreme Court Rules Against Grupo Clarin SA

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By a 6-1 vote, the Argentina Supreme Court has upheld the constitutionality of the South American nation's Media Law, which means broadcast license limitations and divestiture for the country's largest media conglomerate, the Buenos Aires Herald reported.

As reported here (see "TUOL" posts 10/16/13, 4/24/13, 12/10/12, 10/6/10), Articles 45 & 48 of the law, which limited the number of broadcast licenses commercial entities may own, and Articles 41 and 161, which impose deadlines for divestiture, have been the subject of a five-year battle involving Grupo Clarin and Argentina's President, Cristina Kirchner.

The country's Congress enacted the law in 2009 with Kirchner's strong backing. The Supreme Court issued a 392-page opinion last week.

UPDATE: Argentine Supreme Court Decision on Media Law Imminent

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Argentina's Supreme Court is expected to rule within a couple of weeks on the constitutionality of a media law that could break-up the holdings of President Cristina Kirchner's fiercest media critics, The Daily Telegraph reported this week.

Kirchner, 60,currently on the mend from brain surgery, has grappled for four years with media outlets, specifically Grupo Clarin SA, claiming they were complicit in alleged inhumane acts carried out by the military regime that preceded her election.  The media groups, in turn, condemn her government as autocratic and intolerant (see "TUOL" posts 4/4/13/ & 12/10/12).

In the latest phase, media leaders are accusing the government of pressuring retailers not to advertise in the media, which the editor-in-chief of the daily newspaper Clarin has resulted in a 70 percent to 80 percent decrease in ad revenues. La Nacion and Perfil reportedly were other news outlets targeted by the boycott, according to the Telegraph article.

The court will be ruling on the legitimacy of the media law's Articles 45 and 48, which would limit cable network ownership and limit "unlawful concentration practices," respectively. It would force Grupo Clarin SA, for example, to lose most of its broadcasting licenses.