UK: Three chief warns against increasing BT’s dominance

3UK CEO David Dyson urged watchdog Ofcom to impose “fairly significant restrictions” on BT in the country’s upcoming spectrum auction, warning that its acquisition of EE has given it a commanding position in the market.

Dyson, speaking in an interview with the Financial Times for the first time since his own company’s proposed merger with O2 collapsed, claimed BT’s tie-up with mobile market leader EE could enable it to now outbid rivals, with it already holding “close to half” of the spectrum available.

“The combination of BT and EE is incredibly strong financially,” he told the FT. “It has got the financial ability to outcompete everyone in the market in how much they are willing to pay.”

Dyson continued to suggest that BT “could make life difficult” for its rivals by strategically bidding in the next auction, which is expected to be held before the end of this year, and restrict them from increasing their own spectrum portfolio.

FT cites a report from financial services firm Citi which suggests BT accounts for 42 per cent of UK mobile spectrum, with 28 per cent used by Vodafone, 14 per cent by O2 and 15 per cent by Three.

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