Mobilcom Seeks Refund For VAT On 3G License

BERLIN -(Dow Jones)- German telecommunications company mobilcom AG (MOB.XE) said Thursday it will take legal action to try and secure a value added tax refund for a third-generation wireless license it bought in 2000.

Mobilcom was one of six groups that bought3G licenses in Germany in August 2000, just as technology valuations crumbled. It paid EUR8.43 billion.

The Buedelsdorf-based company says it is entitled to a EUR1.16 billion refund for the VAT tax paid. The telecoms regulator, known as RegTP, has refused the request for an invoice that states the amount of VAT.

If the legal claim is successful, 90% of any refund would go to France Telecom SA (FTE) as part of an agreement under which the French telecoms operator bailed out mobilcom in 2002.

Operators throughout Europe have taken action against governments to try and recoup some of the funds splurged on 3G licenses during the tech boom years. Cases in Austria and the U.K. have been referred to the European Court of Justice, whose judgment will be the yardstick for other European countries.

VAT is a tax on consumers. It isn't a charge on firms, which automatically deduct the VAT they pay from the VAT they receive.

"After careful consideration of the chances and risks, we have decided to file a suit," Mobilcom Chief Executive Thorsten Grenz said in a statement.

Mobilcom will file two lawsuits - one with the Bonn district court asking the German Federal Republic to issue a bill with VAT, the other with the financial court in Cologne.

Company Web site: http://www.mobilcom.de

-By Taska Manzaroli; Dow Jones Newswires; +49 30 2888 410; taska.manzaroli@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires"

Posted to the site on 16th December 2004