EU inquiry into O2 roaming complaint

The European Ombudsman, Nikiforos Diamandouros, said Monday that his office has opened an inquiry into a complaint made by O2 on the European Commission’s investigation into its roaming services.

The complaint dates back to July 2004, when the Commission sent a statement to O2, alleging that it had been abusing a dominant market position by charging excessive fees for roaming.

O2, now a wholly owned subsidiary of Telefonica, alleges that the Commission failed to grant proper rights of defence, including failing to provide proper access to files and information as well as for failing to allow for a reasonable timeframe for responding to allegations.

The aim of the Ombudsman’s inquiry is to determine if there has been maladministration by the Commission and has asked the Commission to respond to the company’s allegations before December 31.