European regulators gave Deutsche Telekom three months to open its new high-speed communications network to rivals, an Associated Press report said.
The report said the company must offer a standard contract at a price agreed on with regulators so that competitors could easily access its VDSL network, the Federal Network Agency ordered.
Deutsche Telekom, the former government-owned telephone monopoly, was banking on the high-speed network to offset falling earnings from its traditional fixed-line business, the report said. The company argued that competition should be limited, at least initially, so that it could recoup the costs of its investment.
The new network, already available in 10 German cities, was capable of carrying telephone, Internet and television signals simultaneously, the report said.
The regulators said there was not enough competition among companies using Deutsche Telekom's other networks to justify protecting the new VDSL infrastructure, according to the report.
German and EU regulators had long been critical of Deutsche Telekom, saying it had been slow to implement steps designed to promote competition, the report said.