Orange receives second fine for breaking advertising rules

Orange Tunisia has been issued a fine of TND183,715 (USD90,657), equivalent to 0.05% of the cellco’s total turnover for 2014, by sector watchdog the National Telecommunications Authority (Instance Nationale des Telecommunications, INT) for breaking rules regarding the advertising of tariffs. The INT also ordered the cellco to cease offering its ‘3ajab’ plan, and to withdraw all marketing of the product, saying that Orange was continuing to carry out illegal practices by failing to ensure that prices were displayed to the public in a ‘transparent, clear and readable’ manner. The watchdog had warned the operator over its conduct in April 2015, issuing Orange with a fine of TND29,979, or 0.01% of its turnover, for breaching the advertising rules. Orange’s 3ajab plan is a pre-paid tariff offering customers additional credit when they top-up, giving users five times the value of top-ups of less than TND5, and ten times the amount for TND5 or more.