ISLAMABAD: The Competition Appellate Tribunal (CAT) has upheld the Competition Commission of Pakistan’s (CCP) decision to penalise Pakistan Telecommunication Company Ltd (PTCL) and other Long Distance International (LDI) operators for their involvement in an anti-competitive International Clearing House (ICH) agreement.

The Tribunal, however, reduced the penalty from 7.5 per cent to 2pc of the turnover generated from ICH-related activities. The operators have been directed to deposit the fine within 30 days, with the tribunal warning that failure to do so would reinstate the original 7.5pc fine.

The tribunal’s decision reinforces the CCP’s mandate to protect market competition and serves as a stern reminder that no entity — whether public or private — is exempt from competition laws. It sends a strong message that anti-competitive behaviour will not be tolerated, regardless of the sector.

The ICH agreement, which was signed in 2012, required all international calls to be routed through a single gateway operated by PTCL, which led the LDI consortium.

Other LDI operators were required to assign their termination rights to the consortium, and revenues and traffic were shared based on a quota system rather than through competition. This arrangement resulted in fixed termination rates of approximately 8.8 cents per minute, up from around 2 cents previously, effectively stifling competition and reducing consumer choice.

Published in Dawn, August 20th, 2025