Swedish Carriers Raided by EU Over Anti-Competition Concerns
- Telia, Tele2, Telenor say they will cooperate with officials
- Cable operator Com Hem says it’s in discussions about probe
Pedestrians pass advertisements for smartphones in the windows of a Telia mobile communications store, operated by TeliaSonera AB, in Stockholm, Sweden, on Thursday, Jan. 29, 2015. TeliaSonera AB reported earnings that missed analysts' estimates and forecast that 2015 profit won't grow as Sweden's biggest phone carrier faces widening competition in Nordic and Baltic markets and economic challenges in Eurasia.
Photographer: Johan Jeppsson/BloombergSweden’s biggest mobile-phone companies were raided by European Union antitrust investigators over concerns they may have conspired to prevent others from offering services to consumers.
Tuesday’s raids are a preliminary step in investigating suspected antitrust rules and don’t mean that the companies are guilty of anti-competitive behavior, the European Commission said in an emailed statement. The regulator didn’t specify what suspected practices “preventing entry into the consumer segment” it was investigating.