UK: Three, TalkTalk demand Ofcom curb BT’s dominance

Rivals of BT and Vodafone have banded together to demand Ofcom limit the amount of mobile spectrum they can own.

The open letter to Ofcom CEO Sharon White asks the regulator to set a 30 percent cap on the amount of spectrum that a single operator after the next spectrum auction of 190MHz in 2017.

The signatories, including the CEOs of Three, TalkTalk, CityFibre, Relish and the Federation of Communication Services, claim that this is the only way to prevent increasing domination of the mobile market by BT and Vodafone.

“Failure to tackle the imbalance will see consumers suffer the misery of higher prices for a poorer service at a time when mobile’s importance to the digital economy has never been greater.”

The letter states that BT currently owns nearly half of the UK’s spectrum and Vodafone nearly a third.

The rule would mean BT, for example, would have to sell existing spectrum to buy new spectrum. The cap would primarily disadvantage the two largest operators.

Since BT and Vodafone already “sit on large amounts of unused spectrum”, according to the letter, the failure to implement a cap could see this situation worsening.

“A cap at this level will allow a competitive bidding process among existing operators and new entrants and provide a fair return to the public purse,” the letter says.

Full Content: CBR Online

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