Swisscom faces fine for 'uncompetitive' activity
The Local - [email protected]
Published: 7 Oct, 2015 CET.
Updated: Wed 7 Oct 2015 10:33 CET
The federal administrative court has slapped a 186-million-franc ($192-million) fine against Swisscom for abusing its dominant position in Switzerland’s telecom market.
The court based in Saint Gallen agreed with the country’s competition commission (Comco) that the former state-owned company acted in an uncompetitive way in the high-speed internet domain from 2005 to 2007.
But the court reduced the penalty imposed by Comco of 220 million francs in a judgment made public on Tuesday that could be further appealed to the supreme court.
Before the complete liberalization of the Swiss telecommunications sector in 2007, other companies in the field were reliant on Swisscom as a provider for high-speed Internet access.
But Swisscom charged rates that made it impossible to offer the service without losing money, the court’s judges determined.
They concluded that Swisscom had violated the federal law on cartels.
Comments
See Also
The court based in Saint Gallen agreed with the country’s competition commission (Comco) that the former state-owned company acted in an uncompetitive way in the high-speed internet domain from 2005 to 2007.
But the court reduced the penalty imposed by Comco of 220 million francs in a judgment made public on Tuesday that could be further appealed to the supreme court.
Before the complete liberalization of the Swiss telecommunications sector in 2007, other companies in the field were reliant on Swisscom as a provider for high-speed Internet access.
But Swisscom charged rates that made it impossible to offer the service without losing money, the court’s judges determined.
They concluded that Swisscom had violated the federal law on cartels.
Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.
Please log in here to leave a comment.