Telecom Italia may carry out a reorganisation of the unit that leases its landline network to rivals to avoid antitrust damages of up to EUR 4 billion, according to unnamed sources cited by Bloomberg. The plan would involve folding the OpenAccess unit that guarantees equality of access to rival operators, into Telecom Italia’s wholesale business. The measure is modelled on what the BT Group has done in the UK with its network arm Openreach, said the sources. Telecom Italia’s board is set to review the plan at its 06 meeting.
The move comes after Italy’s Council of State upheld a EUR 104 million antitrust fine against Telecom Italia in May, a ruling that paves the way for a new round of antitrust and civil litigation on the grounds that the former incumbent is continuing to abuse its dominant position in fixed-line network infrastructure. Telecom Italia has cited technical reasons for taking too long or failing to provide fixed network access to rivals such as Vodafone Italia, Wind and Fastweb. Vodafone and Fastweb are seeking EUR 1 billion and EUR 1.7 billion in damages respectively, with the total figure amounting to over EUR 4 billion, according to Italy’s competition authority AGCM.
In the proposed model, Telecom Italia would have to buy wholesale capacity from OpenAccess, just as its competitors do, and the wholesale division would oversee all OpenAccess operations. According to one of the sources, Telecom Italia has reportedly made provisions, including one-time items of EUR 309 million in the second quarter, to address the antitrust concerns.
