H3G attempting to get SMP ruling overturned

Hutchison Whampoa’s UK 3G operator H3G UK is heading to the Competition Appeals Tribunal Court next week to attempt to overturn a ruling by regulator Ofcom that will force it to substantially cut its call termination rates. The cellco is appealing against Ofcom’s decision last summer to brand H3G an operator with significant market power (SMP), thus including it in its recent legislation which compels all SMP cellcos to reduce the fees they charge rivals for carrying incoming calls on their networks by 30%. H3G is worried that the reduction would have a massive impact on its revenues and hinder its ability to offer the heavy subsidies on handsets and tariffs that have helped it rapidly expand its customer base in the last 18 months.