UK carriers may slash termination rates
British Mobile Operators like Vodafone UK, T-Mobile and O2 may cut termination rates (MTR), following a ruling by the Competition Commission. In a submission to the Competition Appeals Tribunal (CAT) the Competition Commission has upheld an appeal by BT Group against regulator Ofcom. The submission recommends for a reduction of termination rates, it suggests that the charges for connections to the networks of O2, Orange, Vodafone and T-Mobile should be slashed to GBP0.04 (USD0.06) by 2010/11. Ofcom proposed for a charge of GBP0.051. The Competition Commission has also recommended charges for connecting to the network of Hutchison Whampoa-owned 3 UK be reduced to GBP0.44 by the same date, against Ofcom’s GBP0.059 suggestion. CAT will take this proposal into consideration and the next case-management conference in the appeals process is anticipated on 2nd February 2009.
