ISLAMABAD, Sept 16: Pakistan Telecommunication Authority Chairman Shahzada Alam Malik on Wednesday warned the operators enjoying 'significant market power' of action if they reduced tariff without prior approval.
"It is wrong to suggest that the PTA is discouraging the telecommunication operators to reduce tariff, but it should be done with the consent of the authority to ensure healthy competition by providing a level playing field to other operators," he said at a press conference.
He said indulgence in practices prejudicial to significant market power status would set an unhealthy market trend. He assured the companies that the PTA would approve their schemes of reduced tariff within a day.
The PTA has recently accorded the status to the Pakistan Telecommunication Company, the Special Communications Organization and the Pakistan Mobile Communications, because they hold more than 25 per cent share in the respective fields.
"If they do not pay heed, we will issue show-cause notices to them," the chairman said. He said it was the responsibility of the regulator to strictly implement the deregulation policy, create a fair competitive environment and restrain the dominant operators from abusing their position.
If the companies were sincere in providing service to the subscribers, they should cut down the air time, he suggested. He said an agreement on interconnection rates with the PTCL would be finalized within a month and one with Mobilink would be completed in 90 days.
He said the subscribers base in the cellular phone sector had swelled to 6.1 million from three million in a year and the installation charges, line rent and tax were reduced because of PTA policies.
He said two new mobile phone service licenses were issued by the authority in addition to 12 long distance international and 100 local loop service licences. He said frequency spectrum to the tune of Rs14 billion was auctioned.
He said the significant market power status was accorded after taking into account the operators' ability to influence market conditions, turnover, access to customers and financial resources and experience in providing telecommunication services and products.
He said the status was awarded to the PTCL for local loop fixed line telecommunication services in 14 regions and long distance international fixed line, leased line and national interconnection services.
The SCO had been given the status for local loop and long distance fixed line and mobile cellular services in AJK and Northern Areas, he said. The PMCL had been awarded the status for mobile cellular telecommunication service and national interconnection for the whole country, he said.
He said the licenses of the mobile phone operators would be renewed after they paid the fee of $291 million each. The licenses of Paktel and Instaphone would expire in 2005 and that of Mobilink in 2007.
