KT IMPOSES A FINE FOR MISLEADING ADVERTISING OF THE INTERNET MEZON

On 27 August, the Competition Council (Konkurencijos taryba, KT) imposed a fine of LTL 20,000 (EUR 5,792) on AB Lietuvos radijo ir televizijos centras (LRTC) for misleading advertising of the mobile internet MEZON.

Having received a complaint of UAB Omnitel, the KT launched an investigation on the advertisement of the mobile internet MEZON, according to which, MEZON is the fastest mobile internet in Lithuania.

In the course of the investigation the KT determined that the LRTC disseminated the aforementioned advertisement by flyers on the trading venues of the mobile internet MEZON, in television and on the internet. Having analysed the possessed information, the KT established that the LRTC failed to provide the evidence for the claims in the advertisement about the fastest mobile internet in Lithuania, and noted that the LRTC failed to objectively compare the data regarding the speed of the mobile internet provided by MEZON and other operators of the mobile internet.

Having examined the data regarding the speed of the mobile internet in ten biggest Lithuanian cities, the KT determined that during the periods indicated in the advertisement in seven out of ten aforementioned cities the mobile internet MEZON was not the fastest internet, according to at least one of the measures (HTTP, FTP-D or FTP-U). In addition, the mobile internet MEZON was not active in some of the areas where the mobile internet provided by other operators was, therefore, in these areas the mobile internet MEZON could not be the fastest either.

When imposing a fine for misleading advertising, the KT took into consideration the fact that the claims about the fastest mobile internet in Lithuania indicated in the advertisement were incorrect, also the long period of advertisement’s dissemination, its large scope and the mitigating circumstance that LRTC admitted the infringement.

            Note

Misleading advertising means advertising which in any way, including its presentation, deceives or is likely to deceive the persons to whom it is addressed or whom it reaches and which, by reason of its deceptive nature, is likely to affect their economic behaviour or which, for those reasons, harms or is likely to harm another person’s capabilities to compete (Law on Advertising, Article 2(3)).

Communication Division