THE FAS RUSSIA: TELE 2 UNREASONABLY INCREASED TARIFFS FOR COMMUNICATION SERVICES

T2 Mobile has increased the cost of providing mobile services on a number of tariff plans from May 12, 2020

On October 20, the FAS Russia found a violation of antimonopoly law in the company's actions.

Earlier, T2 Mobile increased tariffs for communication services from May 12, 2020. The FAS Russia issued a warning, according to which the company had to return tariffs for communication services to the level established before May 12, 2020 within 14 calendar days from the date of receipt of the warning. The service provider did not comply with it.

Due to the failure to comply with the warning, the antimonopoly authority on July 20, 2020 initiated a case on violation of the antimonopoly legislation on the grounds of violation of the Law on Protection of Competition by T2 Mobile LLC.

According to the results of consideration of the case, the FAS Russia found the telecom operator as having set monopoly high prices for mobile radiotelephone services. This has led to infringement of the interests of an indefinite circle of consumers - subscribers of T2 Mobile LLC.

In addition, an Instruction will be issued to T2 Mobile LLC to bring tariffs, which have been increased since May 12, 2020, to the level that existed before the offense was committed.

“It should be noted that since the end of March, the FAS Russia has been conducting weekly monitoring of the activities of telecom operators in the context of the transition of the population to a remote form of work and training. In particular, telecom operators provide reports on changes in the load on communication networks and changes in tariffs,” said Alexey Dotsenko, Deputy Head of the FAS Russia.

“The FAS is monitoring the situation with the growing load on the networks of Telecom operators, carrying out work to increase their capacity, changing tariffs for services that are directly related to ensuring the transfer of the population to remote forms of work and training,” he added.

For reference:

According to the Paragraph 1 of the Part 1 of the Article 10 of the Law on Protection of Competition, actions (inaction) of an economic entity occupying a dominant position are prohibited, the result of which is or may be the prevention, restriction, elimination of competition and (or) infringement of the interests of other persons (business entities) in the field of entrepreneurial activity or an indefinite circle of consumers, including the imposition of contract terms that are unfavorable for it or not related to the subject of the contract (economically or technologically unreasonable and (or) not directly provided for by federal laws, regulatory legal acts of the President of the Russian Federation, regulatory legal acts) of the Government of the Russian Federation, regulatory legal acts of authorized federal executive bodies or judicial acts of the requirement for the transfer of financial resources, other property, including the establishment, maintenance of a monopoly high or monopoly high price of goods.