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HomeNews Cosmofon Complaining on Expensive Interconnection
Cosmofon refuses to sign new agreement for connection with the Makedonski Telekomunikacii network, arguing that the agreement imposes very expensive prices that will limit market competition. Mobile operator claims that they need to pay double and announced legal measures to challenge MakTel’s referent interconnection offer – MATERIO – approved by the Agency for electronic communications. Cosmofon will inform European telecommunication and antitrust institutions.
MakTel informed that the new prices are not just for the new operators on the market. Mobimak and Cosmofon also need to sign new agreements harmonised with the referent offer. MakTel informed the Agency that mobile operators do not respect the due day for implementing the new prices.
Cosmofon officials explained that the main obstacle for signing the new interconnection agreement is increased interconnection fee. They consider unacceptable the fact that approved referent interconnection offer predicts 50% increase of the fees for terminating traffic from mobile to fixed network. MakTel should use the additional cost for developing broadband data transfer network. Thus, MakTel has been favoured on the account of everybody else and can make money without investing anything that could be misused to limit competition and to create market conditions where other players cannot offer competitive prices.
“We are obeying all legal obligations. But, considering the omissions in approval of the referent interconnection offer we will use all legal instruments to protect our rights,” said Cosmofon’s officials.
Kosta Trpkovski, director of the Agency for electronic communications said that he knows about the problem but it is too early to arbitrate. He added that he will wait the three sides to try to reach an agreement. Then the Agency will decide whether they will have additional period for reaching agreement or there will be rigorous measures.
