Page 20 - FAIR TRADE COMMISSION 2023 ANNUAL REPORT
P. 20
Fair Trade Commission Annual Report 2023
18
(2) Important Cases Handled in 2023
● Telecom businesses jointly canceled special calling rate offers
Taiwan Mobile Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Taiwan Mobile) and Chunghwa Telecom Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Chunghwa Telecom) simultaneously canceled the special offers of “intra-network voice calls free of charge” and “calling rate NT$666 for the first six months” (hereinafter referred to as special calling rate offers) for the cell phone plans of the “special mobile broadband 4G plan without speed reduction (699H or 699)” and “new special cell phone plan (monthly rate NT$699) in October 2018.
The Commission’s investigation revealed that after Taiwan Mobile and Chunghwa Telecom released the special calling rate offers for the 699 cell phone plans in June and July 2018, the plans attracted most new subscribers and the number of people subscribing to high tariff phone plans decreased. The result was inconsistent with the original purpose of increasing revenues and high-tariff plan users. Therefore, the two companies intended to cancel the special calling rate offers for the 699 plans in the hope that users would subscribe to high tariff plans so that voice call income losses could be reduced.
The domestic mobile broadband service market was an oligopolistic one with high service homogeneity and price was a principal means of competition. Any service provider unilaterally canceling special calling rate offers would risk a loss of customers and market share. For this reason, the staff members of Taiwan Mobile and Chunghwa Telecom exchanged information and established a mutual understanding to stop the special calling rate offers in October 2018. The cessation of the special offers caused Far EasTone Telecom, another big telecom operator in the country, to follow suit. In other words, three major telecom businesses cancelled their special offers. The impact on the telecom market was immense and market functions were seriously affected.
