A Chinese antitrust regulator is investigating telco giants China Telecom and China Unicom over alleged monopolistic practices in the broadband access business, according to state media CCTV and news agency Xinhua.
Li Quing, deputy head of the National…
A Chinese antitrust regulator is investigating telco giants China Telecom and China Unicom over alleged monopolistic practices in the broadband access business, according to state media CCTV and news agency Xinhua.
Li Quing, deputy head of the National Development and Reform Commission’s (NDRC) price supervision and anti-monopoly department, was quoted saying that China Telecom and China Unicom together control 90% of the country’s broadband market.
Li reportedly added that the two companies may have been using their dominant position to charge competitors higher interconnection fees.
In an email to TelecomFinance, China Unicom said that the company is working on the issue and added, in a statement, that it “is in the process of providing the NDRC with the pricing, volume, turnover and other relevant information of its internet access bandwidth leasing business with the internet service providers for the year 2010.”
A spokesperson for China Telecom said: “The company has always been providing its broadband services strictly in accordance with the relevant laws and regulations. The company will fully cooperate with the relevant regulatory authorities on the investigation.”
