TTNET fined for overbilling customers

ANKARA

The Information and Communications Technologies Authority (BTK) has ruled that the company must pay 30.47 million liras in administrative fees and repay the overcharged amount within six months.

TTNET, the Internet unit of Turkey’s main landline operator Türk Telekom, has been fined over 30 million Turkish Liras for overbilling its customers over a seven-year period.

The Information and Communications Technologies Authority (BTK) has ruled that the company must pay 30.47 million liras in administrative fees and repay the overcharged amount within six months.

According to a statement posted on the BTK’s website on Sept. 5, the broadband service provider has been charged for overbilling its customers by a total of 111.9 million liras between May 2006 and December 2013.

The watchdog has decided to impose fines worth 0.98 percent of the company’s 3.1 billion lira-worth net income over the period, on the basis that it failed to fulfill its duties of correct billing, accurately informing and maintaining transparency for its customers.

Türk Telekom has sent a statement to the Public Disclosure Platform (KAP), saying the repayment of 111.9 million liras will not damage the company’s income.

“The 111.9 million liras that is requested to be returned has already been allocated in previous terms, so the amount at issue is not expected to have any impact on net profits,” the statement read.

The BTK also fined TTNET 0.002 percent of its net sales in 2012 after realizing that it had misinformed the authority over one of the billing items. TTNET had disclosed a 16.5 million-lira repayment amount, but the BTK found out that the actual total amounted to 43.6 million liras.