Mobile termination fees should come under competition law, not pr...

T-Mobile, Vodafone, O2 and E- Plus have significant market power in the termination market and imposing competition remedies. “Ex ante regulation is too severe an intrusion into the rights of mobile operators,” the court said; competition law is adequate to protect consumers and ensure a level playing field. “In this context, it is of particular significance that the termination fees in Germany are significantly below the EU average,” the court said. The ruling “surprised” BNetzA, which appealed, Pres. Matthias Kurth reportedly said. The issue of mobile termination fees “has been a bone of contention between the U.S. and Germany for years,” said telecom lawyer Axel Spies. The regulator has not proposed a cost model, and the court ruling will boost uncertainty in the sector, he said. The EC wants to cap mobile roaming fees, which some deem micromanagement. But a national court has ordered its regulator to step back from preemptive price controls. “How these 2 diverging regulatory approaches fit together remains to be seen,” Spies said. “This has nothing to do with international roaming, but with the application of the current EU [e-communications regulatory] framework by the German regulator on national mobile markets,” said a spokesman for Information Society & Media Comr. Viviane Reding. BNetzA’s decision was correct and it was right to appeal, the spokesman said: “We will await with interest the final outcome of this case.”