Talk to be cheaper

Anna Streżyńska, the deputy Transport Minister responsible for telecommunications, has been appointed president of the Office of Electronic Communications (UKE). She promised that prices of phone connections will soon fall as a result of her plans for rapid market liberalization.

"All decisions of the UKE president should enter into force in the fall. That's when telephone users should notice the first price changes. I expect that eventually customers will save zł.3-4 billion or even more thanks to the lower prices," Streżyńska told Puls Biznesu.

Among her priorities, Streżyńska mentioned ordering Telekomunikacja Polska to lower its wholesale prices for broadband internet access. "This decision should enable significant price decreases for operators and internet users," Streżyńska explained. She will also reject the request of those operators which want to delay the introduction of number portability in prepaid networks.

Streżyńska's appointment was welcomed by telecom operators since it ends several months of uncertainty in the market. It was also rather unexpected as, according to new regulations, the UKE president should be chosen from three candidates presented by the National Radio and Television Council (KRRiTV), and the winner should be nominated by the Prime Minister.

Streżyńska was not among the three KRRiTV candidates and the Prime Minister nominated her for the post against the regulator's recommendations.