Claro, Movistar fined USD 1.55 bln in Colombia

News Wireless Colombia 27 JUL 2017
Claro, Movistar fined USD 1.55 bln in Colombia

Colombian operators Movistar (Telefonica) and Claro (America Movil) have been fined a total of USD 1.55 billion on grounds of breaching a government contract for mobile services, reports Reuters, citing Guillermo Velez, director of the government's legal defence agency. An arbitration court ruled that the two companies failed to return installed networks and infrastructure as part of agreements to provide mobile services dating back over a decade, said Velez, adding that the fine is the largest ever in favour of the state. Claro has been ordered to pay USD 1.02 billion, with Movistar having to pay USD 529.1 million.

The report adds that original contracts signed in 1994 agreed that networks would be returned to the state after 10 years. New contracts were subsequently drawn up eliminating the return of the networks, but were overruled by another legal authority that argued that the original contract could not be modified. The companies have yet to confirm whether they will be appealing against the fines.

Categories:

Mobile

Companies:

America Movil,  Claro,  Movistar,  Telefonica

Countries:

Colombia

Tags:

Wireless, Enterprise, Government policy, Legislation - Lawsuits

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