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Administrative court says the 2019 5G auction was unlawful
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A Koln administrative court has ruled that the 2019 frequency auction was unlawful since it did not provided the so-called service provider obligation.
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Freenet and EWE Tel had gone to court to challenge the auction.
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Though the administrative court has not allowed an appeal, the Federal Network Agency could obtain permission to appeal to the Federal Administrative Court.
“Against the backdrop of the ongoing frequency allocation procedure, we are also counting on the Federal Network Agency to follow the court’s request in a timely manner and replace the negotiation requirement, which has been burnt since today at the latest, with effective competition regulation,” Freenet said.
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The ruling has evoked criticisms against BNetzA.
“We are watching the political influence on important market decisions of the Federal Network Agency with great concern,” says VATM Managing Director Frederic Ufer.
“The ruling is a resounding slap in the face for the Federal Network Agency! Apparently, the management of this important regulatory authority at the time was biased, prejudiced against measures that promoted competition and anything but independent of political influence. The decision to impose an ineffective negotiation requirement on mobile network operators in 2019 instead of a service provider obligation was therefore not made for objective reasons, but to protect Telekom, Vodafone and Telefónica from unwelcome competition,” says Stephan Albers, Managing Director of BREKO.
Assessment
The ruling will likely benefit 1&1 which is expecting fairness when the BNetZa extends frequency allocation since it creates scrutiny over the regulator.