Brussels, 08/06/2009 (Agence Europe) - In a letter dated 5 June, the European Commission endorsed the plan put forward by Slovenia's telecoms regulator (APEK) requiring Slovenia's largest mobile operator, Mobitel, to continue to give competitors access to its network at regulated prices.
In Slovenia, the market for wholesale access and call origination services on mobile networks is still not effectively competitive, unlike most other EU countries. Mobitel, the leading mobile operator, has a market share of around 60% whereas the next operator in size has less than 30%. Two new market entrants are starting to roll out their own mobile networks but still rely on their largest competitor's network to compete effectively for mobile customers. Under these conditions, Telecoms Commissioner Viviane Reding says, “alternative operators must be given sufficient time to climb the investment ladder and roll out their own networks”. She goes on to explain that “in Slovenia, competition is still fragile and market entrants are still heavily dependent on Mobitel's nation-wide network”. According to her counterpart for competition, Neelie Kroes, “ensuring competition and consumer choice in Slovenia is at the heart of this regulatory intervention”. She goes on to comment: “If only two mobile operators can offer national coverage, then this is not enough to ensure that consumers are well served”.
Once the new operators have rolled out their own networks, regulation should be withdrawn, the Commission states in a press release. Also, although it approves the APEK project, the Commission does sound a note of caution calling in its letter upon the Slovenian telecom's watchdog to further review and back up its claim that the country's leading mobile operator has a dominant market position before implementing the final measure. (O.L./transl.jl)