Coscom threatened with licence cancellation - report

Agence France-Presse is reporting that Uzbeki cellco Coscom had its licence suspended for ten days for ‘violation of its licence terms’. The penalty was reported to be in response to a service disruption which saw Coscom’s network downed for two hours on 30 January, the second such occurance in five months. The regulator launched a scathing attack on Coscom, criticising it for ‘systematic violation of the terms and requirements of the licence agreement’ and claiming that it threatened ‘the integrity, reliability, and safety of the country’s communications network’. The regulator also suggested that permanent cancellation of Coscom’s licence would be considered if services did not improve. However, Prime-Tass later reported that the regulator’s decision had been overturned by an Uzbek court, with a Coscom spokesman indicating that the operator would claim compensation for damages. Coscom is owned by MCT Telecom (USA, 84%) and Uzbek individuals (14%). In September 2006 Russian cellco MegaFon, a subsidiary of TeliaSonera, revealed it was in talks to buy MCT’s stake; no deal has yet been struck.