Providers turned to the prosecutor’s office due to demands to enter into agreements at higher prices for access to houses

The capital’s communication service providers turned to the prosecutor’s office because of demands to enter into contracts with the State Budgetary Institution “Zhilischnik” and pay more for access to apartment buildings and additional services. Management companies do not allow providers into the technical premises where the infrastructure is located. Last summer, contracts with operators were already unilaterally terminated and forced to conclude new ones at an increased rate. Market participants warn that the actions of managers may lead to higher prices for communications.

The Association of Communications Companies (AKS, unites 10 Moscow broadband providers) on January 24 appealed to the capital’s prosecutor’s office (available to Kommersant) due to the fact that the housing and communal services departments for the Northern Administrative District and South-Eastern Administrative District sent out to 49 providers in January a form of agreement for placement and access to equipment in apartment buildings that are managed by the State Budgetary Institution “Zhilischnik”. From the response of the prosecutor’s office dated February 2 (available to Kommersant), it follows that the appeal has been accepted for consideration.

Companies are offered to enter into an agreement (Kommersant has one) for the placement of equipment in attics, basements, entrances and additional services, including control over the placement of advertising in entrances, under which operators must pay 2 thousand rubles. per month for each house. Under the old conditions, the price for accommodation and access to equipment was up to 500 rubles. per month for the house, says the president of the association, Alexey Sturov.

MegaFon and VimpelCom confirmed to Kommersant that they receive letters from management companies (MCs) demanding that they conclude agreements for additional services at prices “significantly higher than the market average in Moscow.” MegaFon added that agreements are already in place for the placement of equipment in homes, access to it and the provision of related services to management companies. Vimpelcom and Rostelecom say they encountered restrictions on access to infrastructure. “Representatives of the State Budgetary Institution point to the use of restricting access to infrastructure as a method of pressure to speed up the process of negotiations on renegotiating contracts and increasing the cost of services,” VimpelCom told Kommersant. MTS declined to comment.

Since the summer of 2023, management companies, including the State Budgetary Institution Zhilischnik, have been breaking contracts with telecom operators for the placement of networks in homes, offering to renegotiate them at a higher price. Then the Ministry of Digital Development was going to look into the situation, and the Moscow Department of Information Technologies (DIT) asked to take measures to prevent such situations (see “Kommersant” dated October 30, 2023 of the year).

“DIT considers it important to ensure unhindered access of operators to residential buildings in accordance with current legislation, since this directly affects the quality of communication services for residents of Moscow. In each such case, the DIT is dealt with jointly with the district prefecture,” the department assured Kommersant. The capital’s housing and communal services directorate and the Ministry of Digital Development did not respond to requests.

“GBU Zhilishchnik, which manages houses in the South-Eastern Administrative District and the Northern Administrative District of Moscow, want to extend the opportunity to take money, since it will be very difficult to terminate the contracts later,” believes Alexey Sturov. “Some small operators will not be able to pay an economically unreasonable price for access to homes and will leave the market. Competition will be reduced,” explains the head of the Association of Small Telecom Operators (which unites more than 100 companies) Dmitry Galushko. He believes that increasing fees for access to homes will also lead to higher prices for subscribers.

Alexey Zhabin