ANCOM denied a petition from the two mobile telephony giants to issue a ruling that would force cable TV company RCS&RDS to allow rivals to use its infrastructure to provide fixed Internet services.
Although RCS&RDS has 45% of the number of fixed Internet subscribers in Romania, competition with Telekom, UPC, AKTA and other smaller players is so fierce that it renders a regulation to allow Orange and Vodafone to use other companies’ networks to provide fixed Internet services unnecessary, the ANCOM officials decided.
“The ex-ante regulation on the respective wholesale market is no longer necessary,” ANCOM says, adding the decision was made after thorough consideration.
Orange officials were very critical of the decision, accusing ANCOM of favoring RCS.
“We believe the ANCOM’s decision to ‘take a vacation’ in a time when the market needs regulation the most is wrong,” Orange said.
Vodafone did not comment on the news by the time the story was ready for posting. However, Ravinder Takkar, the chief executive officer of the mobile telephony group, told ZF early this week that in his opinion ANCOM’s (then) intention to postpone for at least three years a decision requiring RCS&RDS and other major fixed Internet network owners to make their infrastructure available to rivals would hinder competition on the segment and help existing operators strengthen their dominant position.
(English version by Loredana Fratila-Cristescu)