Shadayev announced the search for a balance in the issue of abolishing paid Internet distribution

The Ministry of Digital Development plans to find a balance in the issue of abolishing paid distribution of the Internet from mobile devices, said the head of the ministry Maksut Shadayev.

“On the one hand, operators suddenly began to commercialize it. On the other hand, the operators’ arguments are also clear, so we will somehow try to find a balance with both the operators and the FAS,” clarified Shadayev to TASS’s question about whether the ministry will discuss this issue with the FAS.

According to the Ministry of Digital Development, it is necessary to approach the solution of the problem comprehensively and “look for a middle ground,” since new technologies need to be introduced, and they require additional costs.

September 18 FAS obliged mobile operators MTS“Megaphone“, “VimpelCom” (brand “Beeline“) and Tele2 until October 18 to cancel the fee for distributing Internet traffic from mobile devices. The agency found that the operators’ actions contain signs of violation of antimonopoly legislation: the companies impose unfavorable terms of the contract for the provision of communication services on subscribers. The decision was made due to the fact that the service received 186 complaints from mobile operator subscribers in September 2023 alone.

Experts warned that in case of failure to comply with FAS warnings, cases of violation of antimonopoly legislation will be initiated, within which violators may be brought to administrative liability under Art. 14.31 Code of Administrative Offences. If actions lead to restriction of competition, then legal entities may be subject to turnover fines in the amount of up to 15% of the total revenue of the violator.