Mobile phone rivals accused of colluding against 3
Britain’s four biggest mobile phone operators used their own industry trade body as a forum for colluding to shut rival 3 out of the UK market, the High Court heard yesterday.
Lawyers for 3 levelled the accusation against top executives at O2, Orange, Vodafone and T-Mobile in the opening gambit of a £250 million claim against the four companies — the largest competition action of its kind to reach the UK courts.
Jonathan Sumption, QC, acting for 3, alleged that the other four firms also abused their dominant position in the market by using the five-day hand-over period for porting personal phone numbers in order to stitch together special retention packages for customers who try to leave their networks. More..