TDC could be forced to share cable network
Private equity-owned telecoms incumbent TDC could be forced to open up its cable network to rivals, under new plans under review by Denmark's telecom regulator.
The telecom authority (NITA) is considering the measure after a survey based on EU standards showed that TDC has significant market power in the copper and cable broadband market. The draft proposal is under public hearing until February 5.
NITA says the move would ensure that TDC doesn't stop investing in copper broadband technology by relying instead on its dominance of the cable network. Currently, the operator, which already has to allow rivals access to its copper network, owns the largest cable network with an estimated 54% share of all cable broadband subscribers.
"Since TDC, due to the present regulation on the wholesale broadband market, is only obliged to offer access based on its copper network,... NITA finds it likely that TDC decides not to invest in a VDSL2 [high-speed DSL] rollout in areas, where TDC already has cable-tv-network coverage," a NITA spokesperson told TelecomFinance.
Cable broadband has a wide userbase in Denmark. By the end of 2007, 28% of Danish broadband users accessed the service using cable, says NITA, accounting for 542,000 users compared to only 72,000 using fibre optic networks. Meanwhile, the country's two largest cable-TV networks, owned by TDC and Telia, reach 57% of the country's households.
Apax, Blackstone, KKR, Permira and Provide Equity Partners took over 87.8% of TDC in 2006 via a company called Nordic Telephone Company. The remaining shares are listed in Copenhagen.
