Ref: 04/01
Date: 09 January 2001

Regulations on Cable and Wireless that apply to a number of international routes will be removed in the light of increased competition, Oftel announced today.

Oftel has issued a draft notice that Cable and Wireless (C&W) will no longer be subject to additional controls on around 30 routes, including India, South Africa and Turkey, where Oftel found that they did not have market influence. However, the notice states that C&W has Market Influence on 38 other international routes.

The proposed determination is based on an analysis of the level of competition on each individual route. Where C&W does have Market Influence, it must abide by certain conditions including advance notice of price changes.

David Edmonds, Director General of Telecommunications, said:

"I welcome the news that competition has increased on these international routes.

"This has allowed Oftel to remove regulation in certain areas, in line with Oftel’s strategy of regulation appropriate to the level of competition."

Notes to editors

1 Notice and proposed determination that Cable and Wireless has market influence under Condition 56 of its licence is published on Oftel’s website at www.oftel.gov.uk/competition/cwmi0101.htm.

Hard copies are available to the press from Oftel’s press office on 020 7634 8991 and to the public from Oftel's research and intelligence unit on 020 7634 8761.

2 A company has market influence when it is able to raise prices above the competitive level for a non-transitory period without losing sales to such a degree as to make this unprofitable. A determination that C&W has market influence triggers conditions in its licence which require it:

• not to show undue preference or undue discrimination in respect of charges, terms and conditions in the market within which it has market influence
• to publish in advance the precise charges, terms and conditions of those services which it supplies in the market within which it is determined to have market influence.

Back to Press Release Index