EU imposes eight-week deadline on France Telecom

NEWS France Telecom has been given eight weeks to come up with a technical and commercial proposal to offer high speed Internet access to its competitors. The European Commission's Competition Directorate set the deadline following a long-running battle between the dominant French telco and competitors including Cegetal, Siris and 9 Telecom, over access to ADSL. The Commission said the decision to impose the deadline was prompted by a formal complaint against the company. The complaint made by 9 Telecom last November alledged that France Telecom has been abusing its dominant position. In a statement the Commission said this abuse, amounting to a refusal to open up the market, could result in heavy sanctions. At risk is France Telecom's control of all high-speed Internet access, according to industry observers. French Telecom regulator ART wants the telco to lease out its lines to competitors. Under ART's current schedule, ADSL services are expected to be rolled out in Rennes, Le Mans and the South of France by April this year. The EU said it wants to give France Telecom's competitors a fair chance, stating that the company is entitled to 50 not 100 per cent of the market. France Telecom refused to comment other than to state that the eight-week deadline would be difficult to meet.