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| Digicel vows to fight against amendment | |
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By FRANK ASAELI DIGICEL l PNG Ltd will fight to keep its international gateway saying it does not want to be forced to use a gateway that will result in higher prices, less coverage and poor service delivery. Parliament yesterday passed amendments to the Telecommunications Act giving Telikom exclusive rights over the international gateway. The telecommunications amended bill will take away Digicel’s rights under existing PNG laws. Digicel sources said this was unfair because they had applied for their licence before the amendment to section 48 for the supply of public mobile telecommunication services. Digicel questioned why the government was forcing them to close part of its network when people were already enjoying the benefits of competition. The company also questioned why powers of the Independent Consumer and Competition Commission (ICCC) would also pass on to the Minister responsible for communications. Digicel says it was not fair as they have spent K17.2 million on the licence and millions of kina already in rolling out its network. Digicel has started its fight to keep its gateway by taking out an originating summons early this month to take Telikom, the Minister for Communications and Information Patrick Tammur, the Independent State of PNG and the ICCC to court. The summons, OS No. 156 0f 2008, was filed in the National Court in Waigani on April 1 by Digicel’s lawyers with the first hearing set down for May 21. Meanwhile, Andriy Storozhuk, senior economist of the World Bank PNG said liberalisation of the international gateway is international best practice. He referred to the World Bank’s 2004 report which noted that countries that restrict entry to the international communications market face consequences such as higher prices, lower outgoing volume and reduced network investments. |
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