Telekom-Control Commission confirms free additional GSM frequencies for Mobilkom and T-Mobile

Press release dated 19 December 2003

In its session on December 15, 2003, the Telekom-Control Commission (TKK) decided to re-allocate free of charge the additional GSM 1800 frequencies already assigned to Mobilkom and T-Mobile in 1998 and 1999. The renewed allocation was necessary because One, another Austrian GSM operator, had contested the official decisions before the Austrian Administrative Court.

In the course of repeating the procedure, the Commission had to review whether the licensing fees paid by Mobilkom and T-Mobile (ATS 4 bn each) were economically equivalent to the license fee paid by One (ATS 2.3 bn). This process involved a complete review of the circumstances and legal framework at the time when the initial decisions were issued (August 1998 and August 1999).

On the basis of an expert report commissioned by TKK, the Commission decided that the frequency license fees paid by Mobilkom / T-Mobile and One are economically equivalent. For this reason, 2x5 MHz in the GSM frequency range were allocated to Mobilkom and T-Mobile free of charge.