ARMENIAN JUSTICE MINISTER: GOVERNMENT WILL DEPRIVE ARMENTEL OF CELLULAR COMMUNICATION MONOPOLY

The item of the license of Armentel Company, the Armenian telecommunication monopolist, due to which the organization can enjoy 15 years of monopoly rights for major telecommunication services provided by means of public telephone network, did not undergo any conceptual changes, Armenian Minister of Justice David Harutyunian briefed upon completion of Armenian government’s special sitting dedicated to the discussion of the inclusion of some changes in the license. Thus, the Minister noted, the hearsay that “monopoly only included telephone services before, while now it covers major communications as well” do not correspond to reality. In his words, no considerable changes occurred as regards the telephone services in the streets either. As for the company’s monopoly for cellular communication, D. Harutyunian said, “if today Armentel possesses monopoly for these services, tomorrow GSM services, mobile satellite communication services, as well as special mobile radio communication services will be excluded from the right.” Besides, due to the wrong interpretation of the word “access” (it was translated into Armenian in the meaning of “exit”) the rights for receiving database, which comes to Armenia via satellite segment, was excluded from Armentel’s monopoly. As D. Harutyunian stated, the amount of the incoming data 8 times exceeded the outgoing data, thus comprising a considerable part of the traffic. So, if earlier Armentel provided the entry of the data to the republic and then sold it, today any other company possesses this right. According to the Minister, the company will preserve the exclusive right to use its fiber cable network. When touching upon the IP-telephony, the Minister said: “The acting license records that the company possesses monopoly for international telecommunication or any other kind of inter-state or international communication, which can become possible in future and will compete with other monopolies of the company”. At the same time the government obliged Armentel to provide Armenian citizens the opportunity to use low-grade but cheaper IP-telephony. To remind, this type of services provided by numerous private companies has been kept down by the efforts of the monopolist as a sphere presenting real competition. In Harutyunian’s words, the clauses, which allow excluding the possibility of “blockade” of a new operator if any appears in Armenia, were also clarified. As for the “Memorandum on Reconciliation between the Government and Armentel” the Minister noted that if the document is not signed within next 10 days “we will return to the battlefield”.