The joint Knesset Finance and Economics Committee today advanced, with the government’s consent, the date for opening inland telephony and Internet services to September 1, 2004. The previous date, proposed by the government in the economic plan bill, was April 2005. The committee will submit the bill to the Knesset for its second and third readings next week.
The committee found no reason to extend the transition period in order to protect the merged cable company as a competitor of Bezeq’s (TASE:BZEQ). Bezeq and the cable companies will have to provide nationwide service, while other competitors may provide services in one or more of the 15 service areas Israel will be divided into after the market is opened to competition.
One reason the committee was pressured to advance the opening of the market was to prevent Bezeq from consolidating its monopoly.
The committee rejected a proposal by MK David Tal (One Nation) to advance the opening of the market to March 2004. A proposal to extend parliamentary controls of Bezeq’s rates until the new date for the opening of the market was also rejected.
Under the bill, rate controls will be terminated in August, as stipulated in the Telecommunications Law (5742 - 1982), under the assumption that the market would be open to competition by that date.
The committee also rejected a proposal by MK Avshalom Vilan (Meretz) to open nationwide Internet services as soon as the economic plan law comes into effect
Published by Globes [online] - www.globes.co.il - on May 19, 2003