Telecoms costs fall as competition toughens
The partial liberalisation of the long distance telecoms market has brought better effects than the freeing of the local market where TPSA has seen its market share fall by only around five percent. It only took NOM a few days at the beginning of last month to get the same share of TPSA’s long distance market.
NOM still does not know how much of the long distance market it has. It thinks that it is around seven to eight percent but claims that there are studies that show it could be as much as double this figure.
At the same time NOM accepts that getting new clients is hard and the reason it claims is because TPSA is doing all it can to block it.TPSA of course denies this. Not long ago NOM took TPSA to court for more than PLN81m compensation. The latest problem is with billing. TPSA says that it cannot send an invoice with VAT for another operator as this is illegal.
The conflict is for a market worth between USD400m — USD600m annually. TPSA takes 15 percent of its revenue from this market and clearly wants to lose as little of it as possible.
The first good effects for users are coming through. On 1 September NOM will reduce its prices meeting a similar fall that TPSA announced for the same day.
The lowest prices will be offered by Netia 1 although it will only function in 15 number zones and even then only after signing an individual contract. In its first three weeks Netia 1 has gained several hundred new clients, largely from businesses.
In October Energis will also enter the market. It has already agreed terms with TPSA. Like Netia it will concentrate on business clients. It can already count on major international firms like Ericsson, Geant i Regus.