Mobile phone companies operating in Panama could face fines of up to two million dollars if authorities determine that there was any coordination in the announced increases in prepaid phone rates, warned lawyer Geovanny Fletcher, a consumer defense specialist.
The jurist explained that the Authority for Consumer Protection and Competition Defense (Acodeco) conducted evidence preservation proceedings before ordering the suspension of the increases announced by the companies, after detecting striking similarities in the increments.
“It was verified that the companies notified of increases in cellular phone plans that were practically identical and with very close dates to each other, which generates suspicions that there could have been some type of coordination,” explained Fletcher.
According to the lawyer, when companies that dominate the same market announce similar increases almost at the same time, authorities must investigate whether they are independent decisions or an agreement that ends up harming consumers.
Million-dollar sanctions Fletcher explained that Panamanian legislation provides for severe sanctions when it is proven that companies have engaged in practices that affect free competition.
According to Law 45 of 2007 on consumer protection and competition defense, companies that engage in monopolistic practices or agreements that affect competition can face fines that reach or exceed two million dollars, in addition to other administrative sanctions.
Among the measures that could be applied are: * Fines that can reach or exceed $2 million * Suspension or cancellation of commercial licenses * Orders to stop the practices that affect competition * Legal actions or class actions from affected consumers
“We are talking about significant sanctions. The law provides for million-dollar fines and other administrative measures if it is proven that there was a practice that harmed the consumer,” he indicated.
Investigation underway The lawyer explained that the procedure used by Acodeco, known as evidence preservation, is applied when the entity needs to gather information and evidence before making final decisions.
During that process, according to Fletcher, it was observed that the companies in the prepaid phone market announced increases with very similar characteristics, which led the authority to order the temporary suspension of those increments while the case is analyzed.
Consumers are attentive For the consumer defense specialist, what happens with this investigation will be key to determining whether the mobile phone market is operating with true competition or if there are practices that end up affecting users.
In Panama, prepaid phone service is used by hundreds of thousands of people, many of them with low incomes who depend on these plans to stay connected.
Therefore, warned Fletcher, any coordinated increase in rates could have a direct impact on consumers' wallets.
