Comreg blamed over Eircom decision

The Commission for Communications Regulation (Comreg) has been severely criticised for approving the latest Eircom line rental hike.

ALTO, the association representing alternative operators in the communications market has called on the Minister for Communications Dermot Ahern to intervene and protect consumers.

Earlier, Comreg said it would approve Eircom’s plan to increase line rental by €1.68 bringing the monthly rental to nearly €24 from February 4.

ALTO chairman Iarla Flynn, said today : "ComReg seems unable to prevent this blatant abuse of a dominant market position.

"Competition is stagnated, largely due to the anti-competitive and anti-consumer behaviour of Eircom. The single billing service must be brought into play as soon as possible so that consumers will finally have a choice," Flynn added.

Eircom has defended the move saying that revenue from the increased charges will be used to re-invest in telecoms systems, particularly broadband.

However, Flynn remained unconvinced. "Eircom's line rental is set to increase to €290 a year - an increase of 58% since 1998. The Minister should direct ComReg not to approve any further increases in line rental until there is real competition in this part of the market," he concluded.