Case Study: Vanuatu’s “pay or play” scheme

31.08.2020

The Universal Access Policy (UAP) in Vanuatu The Universal Access Policy (UAP) in Vanuatu has been designed and implemented by the national government with the aim of expanding telecommunications services to underserved and unserved areas. The UAP was approved by the Council of Ministers in November 2013 (Republic of Vanuatu 2013). The Telecommunications, Radiocommunications, and Broadcasting Regulator (TRBR) has been appointed as the implementing agency by the Vanuatu government. TRBR is responsible for the implementation of the UAP and for universal service implementation in general. It is empowered by the 2009 Telecommunications and Radiocommunications Regulation Act to enter into contracts…

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M&A activity of the main digital platform providers

30.08.2020

Introduction In recent years, the main digital platform providers have been considerably active in the field of mergers and acquisitions (M&A). Over the period 2015-2017, the leading digital platforms, Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon, and Microsoft (GAFAM) acquired 175 companies (Gautier and Lamesch 2020). This intense M&A activity of the main digital platforms has brought to the forefront the adequacy of existing merger control tools. Can M&A regulation be tightened so as to prevent the digital platforms retaining and extending their already substantial market power? Source: Gautier and Lamesch 2020. Are regulators watching? Some of the M&A activity of GAFAM (and…

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Explanation of externalities on digital platforms

28.08.2020

Introduction One of the reasons why digital platform are special is the presence of externalities. Externalities (which are also known as network effects[1]) are an economic concept: they are a cost or benefit of an economic activity experienced by a third party which has no relation with the one causing the activity. Externalities arise from digital platforms because they act as economic agents matching two distinct groups of users, one on each side of the platform.[2] The users on one side have no direct relationship with the users on the other side of the platform, but each is affected by…

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Article: Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS)

28.08.2020

Introduction It was Benjamin Franklin who famously opined that “nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” And, as he might have gone on to say, human beings try desperately to avoid both of these certainties. Tax avoidance (legal) and tax evasion (illegal) are as old as the concept of taxation itself. But in the digital world, especially for global digital service providers, avoiding taxes has become a lot easier. Regulators and tax authorities are now trying to catch up. Why is BEPS a problem? The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) defines base erosion and…

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Vodafone and TPG merger, Australia

28.08.2020

Background Source: ACCC 2019: 31. TPG Telecom Limited (TPG) has operated as a retail service provider in Australia for many years, as both an infrastructure owner and operator – such as local access and submarine fibre cable networks – and as a reseller of services supported by other networks. TPG has acquired its own radiofrequency spectrum suited for the provision of mobile services. Vodafone Hutchison Australia Pty Limited (Vodafone) is a mobile network operator. It operates a third mobile network in Australia and has for several years had a market share of just under 20 per cent in the mobile…

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Access pricing for very high capacity networks in the European Union

28.08.2020

Introduction The European Commission (EC) has given a lot of attention to the matter of how access prices should be set so as to encourage investment in very high capacity networks whilst maintaining effective competition at the retail level. The guidelines developed in Europe provide a useful benchmark for regulators elsewhere, in particular for regulating the price of access to fibre of cable networks. The European Electronic Communications Code The Directive establishing the European Electronic Communications Code (EECC) was adopted by the European Parliament on December 11, 2018 (European Union 2018). The purpose of the EECC is to respond to…

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Changing the operating model: the creation of UNN in Brunei Darussalam

27.08.2020

Introduction Until 2019, the telecommunications industry structure in Brunei Darussalam was based on the traditional model of vertically integrated telecommunications providers (telcos) competing with each other, with Telekom Brunei Berhad (TelBru) the fixed incumbent, DST Communications Sdn Bhd (DST), and Progresif Cellular Sdn Bhd (Progresif) providing mobile services. Each telco largely offered services based on their own respective networks. Located on the island of Borneo, Brunei Darussalam relied on submarine cable networks managed by the Brunei International Gateway Sdn Bhd (BIG) for international connectivity. Brunei Darussalam has a relatively small population of about 420 000 inhabitants and has a correspondingly…

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Joint dominance

27.08.2020

Introduction On March 17, 2020, the Dutch Trade and Industry Appeals Tribunal, the highest administrative-law court in the Netherlands, reversed a market analysis decision by the Dutch telecoms regulator, the Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) which was based on a finding of joint dominance (ACM 2020). The case throws new light on the regulatory challenges associated with joint dominance and raises questions about the relevance of this concept in digital services markets. The ACM decision On 27 September 2018, the ACM published its analysis regarding the provision of wholesale access at a fixed location in the Netherlands (ACM 2018).…

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The regulation of price bundles

27.08.2020

Introduction According to research conducted by Ofcom in the United Kingdom (Ofcom 2020b: 22), U.K. customers make an average saving of 20-28 per cent, compared with purchasing the same services individually. Not surprisingly, these savings have led to 80 per cent of customers purchasing their electronic communication services in bundles,[1] but Ofcom also found (Ofcom 2020a: 19) that not all consumers are benefiting, with the 41 per cent of customers who do not recontract or switch provider at the end of their contract period missing out on the available savings. Price bundles are both a boon for customers and an…

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Iran tariff approval and notification procedures

27.08.2020

Introduction In 2016, after receiving advice from international consultants, the Communications Regulatory Authority (CRA) of Iran introduced comprehensive procedures for the filing of all telecommunications tariffs and for the review and approval of those tariffs that required specific approval. Prior to 2016, the CRA reviewed all tariff filings and subjected all filings to similar processes. The new procedure ensured that regulatory resources were directed to greater scrutiny of tariffs for services in markets where the operators had significant market power (SMP) and were not directed to the ex-ante examination of tariffs for services in markets that were considered to be…

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