According to a Supreme Court ruling on Thursday, August 23, telecom operator Slovak Telekom will be paid back the €47.8 million that it was charged for an extension of its GSM mobile phone network licence by the Telecommunications Office, the Sme daily reported.
The Supreme Court challenged the way the licence fee was calculated by the regulator, the Slovak Telecommunications Office, for Slovak Telekom, which is 49-percent owned by the state. The court, however, did not dispute the extension of its licence, so the operation of Slovak Telekom's mobile phone network is not at risk.
The Telecommunications Office now has to pay the money back to Slovak Telekom, undo its mistake and re-calculate the licence fee. Thursday's verdict might also have an impact on Orange, another Slovak mobile-phone operator, which paid €40.7 million for the extension to its frequency licence last year and, like Slovak Telekom, filed a suit against the state.
Source: Sme
Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
