LAW BRIEFS

Supply Management, Aug 23, 2007

T-mobile forced to connect its network to Truphone

T-Mobile has been accused of abusing a dominant market position. The High Court ruled it must connect its mobile network to the phone numbers of a start-up, Truphone, which uses Wi-Fi networks to offer mobile users cheaper call costs than with traditional connections.

T-Mobile was the only UK mobile operator not to connect its network to Truphone's numbers. Truphone made a successful request for the court to issue an interim order forcing it to do so. T-Mobile denied its earlier refusal was an unlawful abuse of a dominant market as it only had a 22 per cent share of the market for UK mobile phone services. But Truphone said the relevant market was the supply of services to T-Mobile customers, so it had did have sufficient market power.

For more information see www.out-law.com/page-8354.

Price-fixing: BA fined £270m

British Airways (BA) has been fined £121.5 million by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) and $300 million (£147.7 million) by the US Department of Justice for fuel surcharge price-fixing with Virgin Atlantic.

BA admitted to colluding with Virgin Atlantic to fix surcharges for fuel added to tickets for long-haul flights. Between August 2004 and January 2006 charges rose from £5 to £60 a ticket on both airlines. Virgin has not been fined - it received immunity because it acted as whistle-blower.

The fine is the biggest imposed by the OFT for infringements of competition law. The OFT is also conducting a criminal investigation into whether any individuals dishonestly fixed the surcharges.

Public sector gets legal advice Commercial lawyers at Walker Morris have been appointed to the OGCbuying.solutions Catalyst Framework to advise the public sector :ú on IT, telecoms and e-commerce matters.

Walker Morris is part of a legal panel appointed to the four-year framework agreement. Under its terms any public-funded body can seek legal advice from the firm on matters such as data protection, freedom of information and software licensing.