Swedish operators to get fined for delays

date: December 11, 2001 - source: Siemens UMTS NewsDesk, PTS

Europolitan, Tele2, Orange Sverige and Hi3G face fines of up to SEK1bn from the Swedish National Post and Telecom Agency (PTS) if they fail to roll out Swedish services on time. "The fine will equal the amount the company saved by not adhering to its undertaking", said PTS lawyer Mikael Grap. He also said fines were likely to be higher the greater the portion of the network that remains incomplete. The operators maintain that the network will be completed on time, meaning full 3G network coverage for 99 per cent of Sweden by January 1, 2004.

In order to speed up the rollout, one of the proposals made in the Communication concerns the network infrastructure sharing, i.e. the option for two or more operators to use part of the 3G network jointly. Besides reducing the investments in network infrastructure, the potential benefits are a faster roll-out, a better geographical coverage as well a reduced number of base station antennas which would meet environmental concerns with regard to multiplying base station sites and masts.

Network infrastructure sharing poses a certain number of complex regulatory questions depending on the degree of sharing. Several forms of sharing have recently been proposed by licensed 3G operators throughout Europe to the respective national authorities, ranging from sharing of passive elements such as masts, antenna or base station infrastructure (cabinets, power lines etc.) to more intelligent network parts e.g. the radio access network.

Competition issues are key when discussing network infrastructure sharing. During the meeting, the Commission gave an outline on how the Commission would apply the existing competition rules in this specific context. While each case must be assessed on its own merit, a certain number of criteria to take into account were reviewed: depth of co-operation, market situation (particularly the number of operators), benefits for consumers.

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