AIRTEL-VODAFONE has distanced itself from the investigation of its parent company in India for allegedly operating a cartel.
Bharti Airtel, along with fellow telecom companies Vodafone Essar and Idea Cellular, is being investigated for allegedly forming a cartel in Delhi.
The Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Commission has issued a notice of enquiry against the three telecom giants and its director general of investigations and registrations has been carrying out a judicial review of their dealings.
The Times of India newspaper claimed the DGIR has said the three GSM operators colluded to increase tariffs in Delhi on the same day.
But a spokesman for Airtel-Vodafone played down the investigation.
‘The mobile telecommunications market in India is far removed from that of the Channel Islands,’ he said.
‘The introduction of Airtel-Vodafone as a third mobile phone operator in Jersey and Guernsey has introduced true competition to the marketplace and the company is committed to offering market-leading products and services with highly competitive price plans that offer customers real value and choice.’
In India, despite different cost factors, structures, area of operation, subscriber base and profit, all three firms fixed local call tariffs at 1.20 rupees a minute.
The DGIR report said that it could not be a mere coincidence that the tariff revision by the companies was of identical scale.
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One Article Comment
Perhaps the head of Bharti telecom isn’t planning any cartels over here, but am I am the only person who noted just how insulting his brazenly audacious statement in the press recently was, regarding their position in the Channel Islands and how we are simply a ’stepping stone’ for them to move into Europe…?
That’ll explain why they’re happy to spend squillions making our lovely little island look like a mast pincushion to provide a service we don’t need and probably never make a decent profit, then.
Perhaps Sunil thinks all us welly wearing backwater locals don’t mind having our island denigrated in such a fashion, or perhaps he thinks he’s still in a 3rd world country ripe for exploitation.