By Nicky Redl
The German telecommunication watchdog the Federal Network Agency
Monday said it has initiated a probe to determine whether a unit of
Deutsche Post AG (DPW.XE) has engaged in misconduct, following
complaints from competitors.
The agency is investigating if Deutsche Post's InHaus Services
GmbH gives preferential treatment to Compador Dienstleistungen
GmbH, in which Deutsche Post owns a 26% stake.
"We are examining if any discrimination has taken place," the
agency's spokeswoman said.
InHaus Services offers a range of mail-related services to
companies including Compador, a Deutsche Post spokesman said.
The agency is checking if InHaus gives better delivery time
slots to Compador, the agency spokeswoman said. The time slots
could affect the quality of the service a firm can offer to its
customers, and how attractive that service is.
A spokesman for Deutsche Post said another InHaus customer is
competitor TNT Deutschland unit PostCon. He said Compador does
indeed receive different time slots from PostCon, but InHaus hasn't
committed misconduct. The only reason why PostCon received
different time slots is because it has a greater number of
deliveries, which take more time to handle, he said.
"We doubt that any misconduct will be identified," he added.
TNT Deutschland is part of Dutch PostNL (PNL.AE). A TNT Post
spokeswoman declined to comment on the phone, saying she could only
provide a written statement Tuesday.
Write to Nicky Redl at nicky.redl@dowjones.com
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