TeliaSonera: Ruling On Fees May Help In Other Disputes

STOCKHOLM -(Dow Jones)- TeliaSonera hopes to settle several interconnection fee disputes with rival telecommunications operators after a court ruled in its favor in on disagreement this week, a lawyer for the company said Friday.

The Stockholm administrative court of appeal this week ruled in TeliaSonera's favor in a legal battle with Vodafone Group PLC's Swedish unit. The ruling enabled the Swedish company to reverse previously made provisions worth SEK100 million.

TeliaSonera Sweden's chief legal counsel Bjoern Lindegren said the company has six or seven similar disputes with rivals Vodafone and Tele2 AB and that case concluded this week is "typical" of the disputes.

The disagreements involve the price TeliaSonera is charged for connecting to the networks of other telecom providers.

Lindegren wouldn't provide details on the remaining disputes and the amounts of money involved.

"We're satisfied with the ruling. The court has now made its stance on this issue clear," said Lindegren.

The disputes all concern how much TeliaSonera should pay to Vodafone, Tele2 and Hutchison Whampoa Co. Ltd's new entrant 3, when a TeliaSonera customer makes phone calls to the competitor's customers.

Vodafone wanted TeliaSonera to pay SEK1.53 per minute for the 18 month period to Sept. 30, 2003. The court's ruling stipulates that TeliaSonera will have to pay only SEK1.18 per minute.

The remaining disputes concern other time periods of various lengths, Lindegren said.

Vodafone could appeal the decision to the Supreme Administrative Court, but Lindegren thinks it unlikely the case will be heard there.

"If they do hear it, we believe it's unlikely the ruling will be changed," he said.

A Vodafone spokesman said the company has three weeks to decide on whether to appeal or not.

"We will use the three weeks to analyze the situation and cannot comment before then," said Johan Holmgren, Vodafone Sweden's spokesman.

Holmgren wouldn't say if the court's ruling potentially affects the company's stance in other ongoing disputes.

Jan Tjernell, chief legal counsel at Tele2, said there is still uncertainty on what price level would be appropriate in its own and Vodafone's other disputes with TeliaSonera.

"It's not unlikely that the case with Vodafone will be heard in the Supreme Administrative Court (Regeringsraetten)," Tjernell said.

3's chief legal counsel, David Motander, declined to comment.

-By Magnus Hansson, Dow Jones Newswires; +46 8 545 130 91; magnus.hansson@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires "

Posted to the site on 25th November 2005