Brussels, 11/12/2012 (Agence Europe) - In a letter to the Czech telecoms regulator (CTU), the European Commission has expressed serious doubts about the latter's new proposal regarding termination rates, which would negatively affect consumers in the Czech Republic (termination rates are the rates telecoms networks charge each other to deliver calls between networks, and each operator has market power over access to customers on its own network). The prices proposed by CTU for certain termination services are twice as high as prices in other countries where proper price setting methodologies are applied. The European Commissioner responsible for the Digital Agenda, Neelie Kroes said that “the European Commission seeks fair regulation and is determined to ensure that the regulated termination rates are set at a proportionate level in all member states without any unnecessary delay.”
In its proposal, the CTU has imposed wholesale prices that do not take into consideration next-generation-network based efficient technologies and which ultimately fail to comply with the principles and objectives of EU telecoms rules requiring member states to promote competition and the interests of consumers in the EU. The Commission is also critical of the fact that the CTU's proposal to regulate wholesale prices for fixed and mobile termination would only apply to one telecom company providing the fixed line services and to three out of four operators on the mobile market. Other market players would thus remain free from price control without clear justification. (IL/transl.fl)