3UK Files EC Complaint About Competitors' NFC Efforts

No one invited 3UK to the party.

Back in June, Vodafone, Orange and Everything Everywhere (the company behind T-Mobile and Orange) announced plans to develop a mobile payments service compatible across all of their networks regardless of the device a customer is using. The venture is intended to serve as a one-stop-shop for businesses, advertisers and banks that want to enter the mobile payments arena. However, it seems 3UK is none too pleased that it was left out of the NFC club. The company has filed a complaint with the European Commission about what it claims was a 'planned exclusion' from the party.

Reuters reports that 3UK is asking that they be allowed to join the venture, or, if this is not going to happen, for the effort be scrapped completely. 3UK reasons that its competitors are attempting to 'freeze out' says they're not in it for the right reasons.

"We are asking the Commission to take a clear view of what is at stake for consumers and the dangerous precedent this move could set across Europe for the incumbents to freeze out challengers," Stephen Lerner, general counsel and regulatory affairs director for Three UK, is quoted as saying. "Instead of competing for the benefit of consumers, the three operators that hold 90 percent of the UK market have engaged in a cosy collaboration and closed ranks against competition," Lerner said.

When the four major networks announced their plans in mid-June, 3UK made it clear that it had heard nothing about the venture until it was publicly unveiled. At the time, O2 was quoted as saying 3UK was welcome to join the venture as a customer but as far as participating as an operator, "it [was] felt that Telefonica UK, Everything Everywhere and Vodafone were the right companies to bring into the full standalone [joint venture]." Reuters cites the three companies as saying something similar now that 3UK has taken its complaint to the EC.

It's understandable that 3UK is annoyed at being left out. Though it's smaller in size, the company is one of the nation's 'big' mobile phone operators, and being excluded from a venture that includes all major networks has got to be a slap in the face. Whether or not the others felt 3UK couldn't bring anything unique to the table, or that it was too small to really contribute, remains to be seen. The EC has said it can't comment on the complaint just yet, so we'll bring you more on this as soon as there are any developments.

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