(MENAFN) Spain's National Competition Commission announced that it has imposed a fine of USD159 million on telecoms firms Telefonica, Vodafone and Orange, reported AP.
The commission said that the companies misused their dominant position and charged extremely high prices for texts and multimedia messages.
It added that Telefonica was fined USD61.37 million, Vodafone USD57.41 million and Orange USD39.59 million.
It noted that between 2000 and 2009, the three firms, which plan to appeal the decision, took advantage of the absence of regulation to keep artificially high wholesale prices for operators without their own networks.
The move resulted in higher retail prices for short messages and founded barriers for firms planning to enter or expand in the market.
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.