Network sharing vs competition in the Czech Republic

Last week, Mobilnet.cz reported that Vodafone CR (Czech Republic) issued a complaint against the radio access network (RAN) sharing deal between Telefonica O2 CR and T-Mobile CR, stating that it breached a rule set down by the Czech Telecommunications Office (CTU) that such arrangements should not be exclusive. So either everyone gets invited to the RAN sharing party or there cannot be any RAN sharing at all.

Blocking a network sharing deal would be bad news for the two operators and ultimately also consumers because it will delay the availability of LTE and increase operator costs. However, allowing two parties to cooperate is likely to produce competitive advantage for the two shares and this is what Vodafone objects to.

The obvious solution is to open the deal to Vodafone as well. This would effectively herald the end of network based competition, at least at RAN level, which is where most of the network cost is. Network sharing is consolidation by stealth which flies under the radar of the EU Competition Commissioner. It is an effective way of taking costs out of the mobile industry.  If Telefonica O2 CR and T-Mobile CR invite Vodafone to the party this would remove the threat of scuppering the deal and may reduce total industry costs further. Return on capital employed could recover for all three operators, while consumers benefit from faster LTE roll-out and better LTE coverage.

By Stefan Zehle, CEO Coleago Consulting