The Danish regulatory authority IT- og Telestyrelsen (ITST) has today published the results of its market analyses for Market 8 (call origination on the public telephone network provided at a fixed location) and Market 9 (call termination on individual public telephone networks provided at a fixed location).

As regards the "wholesale market for fixed network access" (ITST uses this terminology, but in practice its definition corresponds to Market 8 of the European Commission's Recommendation on Relevant Markets Susceptible to Ex-Ante Regulation), ITST concludes that the market is national in scope and that, given the fixed incumbent operator TDC's market share of between 98.4% and 96.1% for the year 2003, that there is no effective competition, and no expectation that this market will become competitive in the next few years. Therefore, TDC is considered to have Significant Market Power (SMP).

With regard to Market 9, ITST has adopted the single market dominance theory in accordance with the European Commission's Recommendation (every operator has 100% market share for the termination of calls on its own network) and hence it comes to the conclusion that the fixed incumbent operator, as well as fixed new entrants, have SMP. ITST proposes to designate the following operators:

• TDC
• Telia
• Sonofon
• Song Networks
• Orange
• Consorte Danmark
• Tele2
• Colt Telecom

T-REGS note: It will be seen that the list comprises mobile operators; this is due to the fact that the Danish mobile operators are also active on the fixed market.

The deadline for responses to the public consultations is 3 August 2004.

Following this initial consultation, ITST will prepare a draft decision, which will also put forward proposed regulatory obligations ("remedies"), and will make the notification to the European Commission and to the national regulatory authorities of the other EU Member States. ITST will again open this to (a shorter) public consultation.

The final Decisions will be issued in November 2004.

The ITST Communication on Market 8 (in Danish only) can be accessed by clicking here.

The ITST Communication on Market 9 (in Danish only) can be accessed by clicking here.