Vodafone considers offering TV and fixed communications services to Romanian consumers

British telecom group Vodafone is analyzing the option of providing fixed voice and data services to the consumer segment as well as TV services in Romania, which may include a merger or acquisition, said Vittorio Colao, CEO of the company in an interview for Ziarul Financiar.

“Now is the time to start thinking about providing fixed services to the consumer segment. (…) We are also looking at expansion on the TV market,” said Colao.

The Romanian strategy is following the strategy of the Vodafone group. In 2013, the group has sped up the acquisitions of players with fixed operations and the expansion on the video/TV segment on markets such as Germany, Spain or The Netherlands.

The Vodafone group is taking into consideration all the options, including a merger or acquisition.

In Romania, Vodafone’s competitors, Orange Romania, Telekom Romania and RCS&RDS already offer television services, and even TV content.

The company CEO also said he expects Romanian authorities will compel owners of large fixed networks to open them to competitors so that Vodafone will be able to sell their internet services to the end users.

Colao said Romania needs better regulations, being the only country where access to fixed networks is not regulated but access to mobile networks is. According to the Vodafone CEO, this is an unfair situation, because mobile operators are forced to sign wholesale agreements with fixed network operators while there is no such obligation the other way round.

Colao said the opening of the networks to other companies is a subject of European interest. “If two companies together have 80 percent of the market and none of them has an open network, then there really is no competitive market,” said the head of Vodafone Group.

He said in Germany Deutsche Telekom has opened its networks and should do the same in Romania.

The Vodafone Group CEO also said Romania is a good market and the company wishes to be a more significant player on the fixed communications market. The group is willing to invest more in Romania, provided it has the right conditions- meaning a fitting competition climate and regulation framework.

This would allow Vodafone to invest not only in service centers but also in technology and TV content.

Colao said that for this to happen, the Romanian telecom watchdog ANCOM needs to act in the interest of all operators.

Recently, Vodafone has submitted complaints against ANCOM, requiring damages of EUR 15 million, on the grounds that the radio spectrum acquired during the 2012 telecom tender cannot be properly used in 20 counties due to interferences generated by communication companies in Ukraine, according to Ziarul Financiar.

In order to be able to provide voice services to customers in these 20 counties, the company had to rent bandwidth space from rivals such as RC&RDS and Telekom Romania.

Otilia Haraga

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