Public Affairs
All the latest public affairs news, analysis and insight, including legal, regulatory and political issues surrounding BT, Deutsche Telekom, Telefónica and Vodafone.
BT beats landmark class action case, cleared of unfair pricing
Competition Appeal Tribunal dismisses first-of-its-kind collective class action against BT, having found it to be charging ‘excessive’, but not ‘unfair’, prices.
New INCA CEO tells UK altnets to mobilise against common enemy
Industry body recce’d under new CEO, with collaboration and communication identified for rework — including potential Openreach hotline upgrade — despite cloud of consolidation.
Orangewatch Weekly: Group takes regulators to task in EU and Spain
Latest from Orange and its ecosystem, including: Christel Heydemann lays out lengths CEOs are prepared to go to bring about regulatory change in Europe; hackles rise in Spain amid proposed local regulatory changes; and Orange-linked infra projects elsewhere are moving ahead…
Vivo strikes deal in Brazil’s fixed-line regulatory reform
Telefónica|Vivo has signed an agreement to move from a concession model for fixed telephony services to the new authorisation regime. Read more…
UK struggles to get space strategy off ground as satellite demand rises
Ofcom data shows satellite connectivity lines doubled in the year, with rural users taking up the offer as an alternative to terrestrial networks.
Ofcom plots spectrum fee overhaul after MNOs’ calls for change
UK regulator sets out proposal to cut £40m from mobile operators’ collective annual spectrum licence bill after BT’s call for change.
Exasperated telco CEOs mulled strike action to drive EU regulatory change: Orange’s Heydemann
Orange CEO says the concept of a CEO strike came up in discussions over how to change European regulators’ mindset towards sector, although concedes impracticality of such a move.
Vodafone hit with £120m enrichment claim as nearly half of retail footprint launches action
61 plaintiffs, who either previously operated or still run almost half of Vodafone’s UK retail franchises, are claiming that commission cuts and other commercial decisions were implemented in bad faith to favour the operator over its partners. Read more…
Colombia delays Telefónica reprieve in network licence dispute
Operator faces pushback from Colombian government after being on the verge of winning long-running legal dispute. Delay in the resolution process comes at critical moment for Telefónica’s Colombian operations, as it seeks to exit the market…
Rivals rail against CNMC plans to amend Telefónica regulations – report
Spanish regulator is consulting on raising prices for duct access and making the methodology underpinning economic replicability tests more “flexible”. Read more…
Vodafone backs AST SpaceMobile with commercial tie-up
Vodafone put a ring on its relationship with SatCo startup AST SpaceMobile with an exclusive, long-term commercial agreement for offering direct-to-device services.