Dirty TP Tricks
The European Commission suspects that TP S.A. used a variety of gimmicks to make it difficult for its competitors to provide access to broadband internet. According to Polish law, TP S.A. is obligated to allow all companies wishing to provide internet access to its customers to use its network. Despite the fact that TP S.A. charges for this service, the European Commission believes that the Polish telecommunications leader has at times been unwilling to carry out its obligations and therefore violated the rules of the competitive market. “Alternative service providers were forced to deal with TP S.A.’s suspect strategy which included demands to meet unreasonable requirements and deadlines.
In addition, TP S.A. refused to provide information needed by its competitors to achieve success on the market” reads the Commission’s communiqué. “These practices were clearly aimed at hindering the development of the Polish broadband internet-access retail market”. The Commission began looking into the case in April of 2009, at the same time as the Electronic Communications Office (UKE), a Polish body, was investigating the issue of Centertel. Centertel, the Orange cellular network operator and subsidiary of TP S.A. decided to lease TP S.A.’s network which allowed it to provide an additional (internet) service – Orange Freedom. A perfectly legal move. However, what was not completely legal was the fact that Centertel was given preferential treatment and paid little for using TP S.A.’s network – at least that was what TP S.A.’s competitors – PTC and Netia – claimed at the time. The UKE’s subsequent investigation showed that Centertel had access to information others did not. The European Commission’s suspicions do not prove that TP S.A. is in violation of the law. If this does turn out to be the case though, one of Poland’s biggest companies will face heavy financial penalties. When TP S.A.’s main shareholder, France Telecom, wound up in a similar predicament it was fined EUR 10 million. The Commission is expecting a reply on the part of TP S.A. within the next two months.
Gazeta Wyborcza
