EMPLOYEES of the Cyprus Telecommunications Authority (CyTA) will today picket outside Parliament calling on politicians not to block an impending deal between the semi-government organisation and LTV.
With the mammoth deal under scrutiny from political quarters and regulatory authorities, CyTA has marshalled its unions to the cause, warning that the cancellation of the agreement would spell doom for the state giant.
CyTA is slated to rake in over £300 million from a 15-year collaboration with LTV, who will supply the miVision platform with television content, including sports and entertainment programmes.
More importantly, the deal aims at making miVision viable once the switchover to digital television is made in 2012. In coming years, the platform will support triple play (voice, video and data), meaning subscribers will have broadband internet, telephony and digital television, all through a single set-top box.
Taking their cue from CyTA’s top brass, unions PASE-ATIK and SIDIKEK-PEO say that the organisation will not survive unless it jumps on the triple play bandwagon.
Even though Parliament has postponed the crucial vote on CyTA’s budget for the plenum next week, the unions will still mobilise today, doing their bit in putting pressure on the powers that be.
“CyTA must be allowed to be competitive and flexible and stay in the game,” declared Nicos Moiseos, general secretary of right-wing union SEK.
Yet even as he was making the statement, Moiseos acknowledged that the unions did not know the ins and outs of the deal, which critics insist breach competition laws in the telecom industry.
Left-wing PEO took a more militant attitude, with general secretary Pambis Kiritsis accusing the agreement’s detractors – particularly DISY – of ulterior motives.
“Those who speak out against the deal do so for political reasons. The bottom line is, they want to exploit the issue,” he said.
The decision to push back ratifying CyTA’s budget was reached yesterday by the House Watchdog Committee. AKEL, DIKO and EDEK seem positively inclined toward the deal, and their votes would be more than enough to give CyTA the thumbs-up.
The voting next Thursday also coincides with the deadline for the signing of the contract between LTV and CyTA, giving the parties involved another week to promote their agenda.
The Competition Commission could block or suspend the deal if it finds that it places barriers to private telecom providers. However, the commission’s probe is likely to take several months to complete.
In theory, the CC is empowered to declare the agreement null and void even if CyTA gets the green light from Parliament in the meantime.
But sceptics say that, given the Cypriot reality, the commission will have its work cut out without political support.
There has been a great deal of talk that key government figures – including Communications Minister Harris Thrasou and President Papadopoulos – knew all about the deal beforehand.
When news of the agreement was leaked to the press last month, the President first denied any knowledge, but subsequently made a partial retraction, conceding he may have been informed.
It then emerged that LTV is a client of the Tassos Papadopoulos law firm, though not in connection with the miVision deal.
This has all fuelled speculation that something is amiss, giving ample ammunition to the agreement’s opponents.
Last month, the European Commission rebuked the government for lacking the political will to liberalise the telecommunications market and introduce competition. Its 2005 report was especially damning on Cyprus, finding that innovation and growth in the telecom industry is being hampered by conditions both favouring and sustaining a monopolistic situation.
