The Dutch Telecom Agency has fined mobile operator Telfort EUR 5 million for failure to meet the coverage requirements of its UMTS licence. The agency's technical measurements show that Telfort does not provide sufficient coverage with its UMTS network and is under-utilising the spectrum. Telfort was acquired by KPN in 2005, and KPN has since moved the Telfort customers to its own network. If the company does not meet the UMTS licence requirements within three months, it will be forced to pay another fine of EUR 5 million, with the total penalties rising to a maximum EUR 40 million. The spectrum regulator said it already warned Telfort last year about the infractions. If the spectrum is not being used, it should be returned to the government, as there is sufficient interest to issue the spectrum to other industry players, the agency said.
