1149/3/3/09 The Carphone Warehouse Group Plc v Office of Communications (Wholesale Line Rental)

Summary of appeal published 7 January 2010. By Orders of the Chairman dated 26 January 2010 and 3 February 2010 respectively, British Telecommunications plc and British Sky Broadcasting Limited were granted permission to intervene in these proceedings. The Tribunal made a further Order on 3 February 2010 establishing the timetable for the future course of these proceedings.

On 18 February 2010 the Tribunal made an Order referring to the Competition Commission the specified price control matters raised in the appeal.

On 24 March 2010, the parties notified the Tribunal that they had agreed to settle the non-price control matters arising in the appeal. A hearing took place on 25 March 2010 to consider the appropriate form of Order to give effect to the proposed settlement. On 26 March 2010, the Tribunal made an Order under Rule 57 of the Tribunal’s Rules granting Carphone Warehouse permission to withdraw the non-price control matters arising in the appeal and vacating the proposed hearing of the non-price control matters.

On 31 August 2010, the Competition Commission published its final determination in relation to the specific price control matters raised in the appeal. The Competition Commission rejected all the challenges made by CPW and so did not indicate that any changes were necessary to the price controls established by OFCOM.

Upon none of the parties seeking to challenge the Competition Commission’s determination, the Tribunal decided that no aspects of the determination fell to be set aside on the application of judicial review principles. Accordingly, the Tribunal made a Ruling on 11 October 2010 dismissing Carphone Warehouse’s challenge to the WLR Decision pursuant to subsections 193(6) and 195(2) of the 2003 Act.

This case has now been archived.