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Matthew Vella
Maltacom and Vodafone Malta have made their intentions clear to the Prime Minister that they will not be financing the Malta Security Service’s eavesdropping technology, this newspaper can confirm.
The two companies, the island’s two mobile phone network providers, have told Lawrence Gonzi they should not be expected to finance the security service’s legal interception system, which will cost EUR2 million (Lm860,000) over the next five years and which has to be shared between all telecoms and internet providers.
The contribution payable by any company or internet provider offering an electronic communications service was devised by the Malta Communications Authority, basing it on total revenues.
Telecoms companies and internet providers are riling against the MCA, the national regulator for communications and postal services, claiming the authority charges very high licence fees which are more than sufficient to cover its administration costs.
The decision by the MCA to get all companies to pool in the cash needed to procure the security service’s new interception technology, is just the latest bone of contention between the two sides.
Private firms are saying they should not pay costs for legal interception which is the state’s responsibility, saying the action would be discriminatory in their regard.
Both Maltacom and Vodafone have claimed their refusal to pay is in line with EU law.
They also say that apart from financing the procurement, which is not free from controversy, they have had no say in the decisions concerning the purchase of the system.
The MCA chose Israeli firm Verint earlier this year, despite being more expensive than rival bidder RCS. The authority refused RCS the right to appeal, claiming the tender was issued under the auspices of the Malta Security Services, which is not bound by public procurement rules.
RCS have taken the MCA to court, claiming its actions were discriminatory, apart from alleging that a Verint upgrade sold to Go Mobile, could have served as a reason why the Malta Security Services opted for Verint, even though RCS’s offer was the cheapest.
“What would have happened had the tender been awarded to RCS rather than Verint? Go Mobile would have acquired a solution that was not compatible and would have caused a problem in creating the fund necessary to pay the tender issued by MCA,” RCS sales director Luca Crovato said in his affidavit. “I do not believe that the ‘upgrade’ sold to Go Mobile was to be simply dismissed once the tender was awarded, but was to be ‘reused by Verint’… By reusing an upgrade, Verint was able to change the scope of the supply for the tender.”
mvella@mediatoday.com.mt
Links: www.maltatoday.com.mt/2006/08/20/t1.html
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