The Competition Authority imposes a 50 million króna fine on Já hf. for breaching competition law.

Í Decision of the Competition Authority, published today, concludes that Já hf. abused its dominant market position in the market for the operation and wholesale access to a telephone number database. The company did this through conduct directed at its potential competitors in the retail markets for information services based on access to the said database.

The Competition Authority's investigation was based primarily on complaints from Miðlun hf. and Loftmyndir ehf., who argued that Já's pricing for access to its database was excessive and intended to exclude competition. The Competition Authority had also received a submission from the Post and Telecommunications Authority concerning barriers to competition arising from the said commercial terms of Já.

The Competition Authority has concluded that Já was in a dominant position in the relevant markets of this case. It is also the Competition Authority's view that access to Já's database is essential for those parties who wish to offer directory enquiry services in competition with Já. Já's database has its roots in the period when telecommunications in this country were monopolised. It was previously under the control of Síminn and its predecessors.

In the opinion of the Competition Authority, Já's pricing for access to the database has been excessive and designed to exclude competition. Through this pricing, Já has effectively denied potential competitors access to the company's essential facilities, thereby maintaining or strengthening its dominant market position. It was established that those intending to use the database in a way that could lead to competition with Já were made to pay a much higher price than those who posed no competitive threat. Já offered such parties a price that was tens of millions of krónur lower on an annual basis for access to the same information. Já's conduct in this regard is neither objective nor fair and is not consistent with the requirements imposed by competition law on a company in a dominant position.

Due to these breaches, Já is required to pay an administrative fine of 50 million krónur to the state treasury.

In its decision, the Competition Authority issues specific instructions to Já, which include an obligation to ensure equality, objectivity and transparency towards those parties who request access to information in the company's database. The instructions include, among other things, the following:

• The information services of Já, on the one hand, and the company's competitor, on the other, shall have equal access to information in the company's database at the same price, terms, quality and level of service.
  

• Access to the database and the connection of potential competitors in information dissemination will be on the same terms as those of Yes in information dissemination.
  

Is this instruction to 'Yes' intended to promote competition and increase consumer choice in information services?.

See decision 31/2014
See the decision of the Appeals Committee 09/2015