RCS&RDS faces fresh probe as it defends its ground

Romania’s competition watchdog has launched an investigation into leading cable operator RCS&RDS/Digi over possible abuse of a dominant position, according to local reports.

The move is the latest against the cable operator, which has called out allegations aired in the media and in the Romanian parliament and calls for regulatory action against it.

The competition council announced that it was probing the operator after receiving a complaint from Aleph News Television, a TV channel owned by Pro TV boss Adrian Sârbu, alleging that it had been discriminated against in its positioning in Digi’s EPG.

Earlier in May, Romanian senator Lucian Romaşcanu of the PSD party introduced amendments that would force RCS&RDS to either give up ownership of TV channels or ownership of cable infrastructure.

The amendment called for operators with more than a 40% share of the cable market to be forced to give up ownership of channels.

RCS&RDS last week issued a statement that it “rejects all allegations of alleged wrongdoing in business conduct” and that it “operates in accordance with applicable laws, applicable regulations and acts with integrity, mastering the highest principles of business ethics and responsibility”.

The company said that it reserved “the right to defend our business from any unjustified, defamatory or slanderous attack, using all legal means at our disposal”.