Decision on the "PT Timeslots", "PT Destinations" and "PT Groups" Offers from PTC
1. The Autoridade Nacional de Comunicações (National Communications Authority) (ANACOM) received, on 07/03/03 a complaint submitted by Onitelecom, Infocomunicações S.A. (ONI), against a set of new commercial offers, namely, i) “PT Destinations”, which consists in the offer of minute packages for calls in the network of PT Comunicações S.A. (PTC) within the national territory and for calls terminating in Spain, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, the United States and Canada; ii) “PT Timeslots” – “Night and Weekend”, “After Hours” and “Part Time” - which consists in the offer of three different minute packages for local and regional calls within the PTC network - and iii) “PT Groups” - “Friends 1 to 1, 1 to 3 and 1 to 10” - which consists in the offer of minute packages for calls within the PTC network, comprising 1, 3 or 10 destinations selected by the user.
2. Initially, these offers raised concerns as to the possibility of i) the fixed telephone service providers (FTS), operating by means of indirect access, being able to present similar offers, based on the prices charged by PTC for the interconnection service – the necessary input to the establishment of analogous offers, as that entity has recognised - and ii) the mentioned offers being able to constitute an obstacle to the conditions for a sound market competition. In the light of the above, on 13/03/03 ANACOM requested of PTC additional information regarding the afore-mentioned offers, namely as to the demonstration of the compliance with the applicable regulatory principles.
3. In reply to the request presented by ANACOM, PTC submitted a range of comments, by letter dated 20/03/03, on i) the innovatory features of the offers, ii) the compliance with the principle of cost orientation of prices and iii) the compatibility of the offers with the interconnection prices, established by the Board of Directors of ANACOM on 21/03/03https://www.anacom.pt/render.jsp?contentId=418271.
4. The Board of Directors of the National Communications Authority (ANACOM) approved, by determination of 10/04/03, the likely purport of the decision on the offers under consideration, which was notified to the interested entities, who were entitled to assess the issue if they so wished, pursuant to the Code of Administrative Procedure. Upon the hearing granted to the interested entities, the respective report was carried out.
5. In the meantime, information on the “Friends 1 to 3” price plan was published on the PTC website. Likewise, ONI submitted this information to ANACOM.
6. By fax dated 01/07/03, PTC informed that it was finalizing significant reductions on the interconnection prices for the termination of outgoing international traffic, presenting the following expected prices (euro cents per minute) to the relevant destinations, namely, 2, 74 to Spain, France, Germany and the United Kingdom, 3,84 to the United States of America, and 4,39 to Canada.
7. Therefore, having regard, in particular, to:
i) The replies of interested entities to the draft decision, and the respective assessment of ANACOM as to the relevant issues, set out in the respective attached document, referred to as “Report of the Hearing Granted to the Interested Entities”;
ii) The fact that, pursuant to article 8 of Decree-Law no. 415/98, of 31/12, PTC, as an entity with significant market power, is bound to comply with the principle of non-discrimination as far as the interconnection offer is concerned, which entails, namely, an obligation to offer the conditions and information applied to its own services, subsidiaries or associated companies, to the interconnection applicants that offer similar services and that are in similar conditions;
iii) The fact that the prices for the access and use of the fixed telephone networks and the FTS, charged by the respective operators and/or providers holding significant market power, shall comply with the principle of cost orientation, pursuant to article 34 of the Regulations for the Operation of the Fixed Telephone Service;
iv) The fact that the prices for the “Friends 1 to 1” and “Friends 1 to 3” offers do not comply with the principle of cost orientation of prices;
v) The fact that FTS providers, operating by means of indirect access, for the expected levels of use, are able to present offers competing with the PT Timeslots”, “PT Destinations” and “PT Groups” offers, based on the prices charged by PTC for the interconnection services for national traffic and on the international interconnection prices submitted by PTC to ANACOM on 01/07/03;
vi) Article 34 of Decree-Law no. 415/98, of 31/12, article 51 of Decree-Law no. 474/99 of 08/11, point n) of article 6 and point g) of article 9, both of the Bylaws of ICP-ANACOM, approved by Decree-Law no 309/2001 of 7/12,
The Board of Directors of ANACOM, at the meeting held on 03/07/03, determined that:
1) The “Friends 1 to 1” and “Friends 1 to 3” offers are to be withdrawn;
2) PTC shall update the interconnection prices for the termination of outgoing international traffic, established by the Interconnection Reference Offer, within 10 days at the most, emphasizing reductions which shall be not below the ones notified to ANACOM on 01/07/03;
3) PTC shall submit to ANACOM, every three months and providing a monthly breakdown, up to 20th day after each quarter, the levels of use of each package offered or to be offered, in order to safeguard the risks pointed out by ANACOM in the respective draft decision.
See also:
- Report of the hearing granted to the interested entities on the draft decision on the offers ''PT Timeslots'', ''PT Destinations'' and ''PT Groups'' from PTC https://www.anacom.pt/render.jsp?categoryId=74750
