Telecoms regulator resigns

TELECOMMUNICATIONS Regulator Vasos Pyrgos has quit unexpectedly amid rampant speculation that he was under pressure to turn a blind eye to infractions in Cyprus’ ‘Wild West’ telecoms market.

Appointed to the newly-created job in 2002, Pyrgos’ term as the market watchdog was due to expire six years from now.

But in a letter addressed to the Minister of Communications as well as to the President of the Republic, Pyrgos said he was stepping down at the end of the month. The decision is final.

Pyrgos himself has said his decision is based on “personal reasons”, although in remarks made to Phileleftheros he did not deny there may be other, professional motives.

The paper also suggested that Pyrgos disagreed with how the government planned to introduce digital terrestrial television to the island.

Pyrgos has asked to meet personally with President Demetris Christofias to explain the reasons for his resignation.

He could not be reached for comment yesterday.

The watchdog has been on CyTA’s case for some time now, slamming the telecoms giant for holding a massive slice of the internet and mobile telephony market, despite liberalisation.

Pyrgos has also used harsh language to censure CyTA for not allowing new players to enter the market, pointing out that while prices were increasing in all other areas of the economy, the cost of telephone calls were dropping. He has also hinted that CyTA uses cross-subsidisation to get an unfair edge over the competition.

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.