STOCKHOLM, Nov. 9 (ChinaEurope) — The Swedish Post and Telecom Authority (PTS) was forced to suspend the country’s 5G spectrum auctions set for Tuesday, after the administrative court in Stockholm inhibited on Monday parts of the authority’s earlier decision that had banned the use of equipment made by Chinese telecom giant Huawei in Sweden’s 5G networks.
“The Administrative Court has today made a decision, which means that certain parts of PTS’ decision prior to the upcoming 5G auction will not apply until further notice. The Administrative Court has, among others, stated that the decision affects Huawei’s rights in such a way that the company has the right to appeal the decision,” said the court in a press release on Monday.
“The Administrative Court further states that the decision in the parts concerning Huawei shall not apply for the time being (inhibition) as the outcome of the case may at present be considered uncertain,” it said.
The prohibition issued by the Stockholm administrative court was a direct response to Huawei’s appeal against PTS’ administrative decision last month to ban qualified operators planning to attend the country’s 5G spectrum auctions from using Huawei equipment.
The decision also demands operators to phase out all existing 4G and 5G Huawei components by Jan. 1, 2025. Huawei submitted an appeal on Nov. 5 to the administrative court to reverse the decision made by PTS on Oct. 20.
Following the court’s decision, PTS said in a press release later on Monday that due to the court’s prohibition, it has informed operators approved to participate in the planned auction that the event will not begin on Tuesday.
“The Administrative Court has concluded that Huawei has the right to appeal PTS’ decision. The decision on inhibition means that the conditions relating to e.g. use of Huawei products for the time being does not apply during the administrative court’s further examination of the case,” said Johan Lundmark, chief judge at the court, in the release.
Citing national security reasons, PTS also banned the use of components of another Chinese company ZTE. Both companies have denied such accusations, and said that they have been, for years, strictly observed local laws and contributed to the construction of local infrastructure. Enditem
Also in today’s EMEA regional roundup: Ericsson announcement prompts shares plunge; Telia launches FWA 5G in Norway; France’s OVH strikes cloud deal with Google.The Swedish communications regulator, PTS, has applied the brake to the country’s 5G spectrum auctions after a Stockholm court effectively reversed its decision to ban Huawei from the process, at least for the time being. As Reuters reports, Sweden last month followed in the footsteps of the UK and others by banning Huawei’s gear from its 5G network, asking companies taking part in 5G auctions to remove any existing components from the Chinese vendor by January 1, 2025. Last week, however, Huawei appealed the decision. (See No Huawei for bidders in Sweden’s 5G auctions.)Shares in Ericsson dropped 4% during mid-morning trading in Sweden after the equipment maker said it would aim for higher profitability in the long term without adjusting targets for the 2022 fiscal year. That may have disappointed investors hoping the ejection of China’s Huawei by various European governments and service providers would have prompted Ericsson to be more bullish. In a statement, the company said its long-term goal was an earnings margin (after interest, tax and amortization) of 15-18%, excluding restructuring costs. This year it is aiming for an operating margin of 10% and it expects to increase that to 12-14% in 2022, excluding restructuring. One risk flagged by the company is a Chinese response to the Swedish government’s recent Huawei ban. If China decides Western vendors are unwelcome, Ericsson could immediately lose the source of its recent 5G growth.Telia is bringing fixed wireless access (FWA) 5G broadband to Norway, beginning its rollout in the city of Trondheim before gradually opening for orders depending on the reach of its 5G coverage. Initially, downlink speeds of 100 Mbit/s, 200 Mbit/s and 300 Mbit/s will be offered, though Telia promises “even higher speeds” in the future.
Source: Xinhua and Eurobites
Editor Xuefei Chen Axelsson