The Commission for Communications Regulation has found that the market for voice call termination services on mobile phone networks in Ireland is not competitive.
In a statement, it said that it had decided that four operators here - Vodafone, 02, Meteor and 3 - should each be designated with significant market power on their own networks.
Mobile termination charges are the wholesale rates which operators, both fixed and mobile, pay to mobile operators for call which are connected to subscribers on their networks. They affect consumers indirectly because they are factored in to the prices consumers pay at retail level for fixed-to-mobile and mobile-to-mobile calls.
ComReg today published the conclusion of its review of the mobile termination markets and also published a consultation paper covering obligations it proposes to impose on mobile operators.
ComReg also said that it has concluded that mobile voice termination rates in Ireland need to be cost oriented and is proposing a number of ways to reduce voice call termination charges to efficient operator levels.
The regulator said it has taken into account that Vodafone and O2 have already committed to voluntary reductions in their termination rates and that Ireland's mobile termination rates are low in comparison to other EU countries.
