DTAC appeals against infrastructure-sharing
Total Access Communication (DTAC) has filed an appeal to the Supreme Administrative Court requesting revocation of a Central Administrative Court injunctive relief order so the company can continue expanding its third- and fourth-generation networks on th
The injunction, as requested by CAT Telecom, prohibits DTAC from providing further network sharing by installing or connecting the equipment it operates under the concession agreement with CAT with 3G and 4G equipment of other operators. DTAC argues that this infrastructure-sharing prohibition seriously restricts the right of mobile-phone users of 2.1GHz operators nationwide to gain access to the existing infrastructure of DTAC, and is against the rights that the law actually affords to them.
The result, says DTAC, would be higher service fees and deteriorating quality and coverage, while also giving rise to environmental concerns. It would also discourage potential entrants to this market, to the overall detriment of consumers’ well-being.
Narupon Rattanasamaharn, DTAC senior vice president and head of its regulatory division, said yesterday that the company had filed an appeal against the injunctive relief order.
Narupon said allowing infrastructure sharing with other 2.1GHz operators would bring the government and CAT Telecom, as the concession grantor, more revenue. Hence the prohibition requested by CAT would cost it money, while also resulting in higher costs for the operators that would eventually be reflected in end-user retail prices.
Moreover, the prospect of being barred from the DTAC network, with the resultant high operating costs, would discourage new players from participating in upcoming spectrum auctions, and would certainly affect spectrum valuation, DTAC claims.
The company argues that no one, including CAT, benefits from this prohibition. The more time passes, the more the damages would be irreparable.
In previous similar cases, DTAC said, the Administrative Court had consistently refused to grant this kind of injunctive relief.
“We thus hope that the injunctive relief order will be lifted soonest by the Supreme Administrative Court for the benefit of the public,” the company said.
