Report dated Sep. 7, 1999 by Weather Service Finland Ltd
Finnish Meteorological Institute degrades the quality of radar images and restricts data access

In the following, the background information is given on the incident resulting in the request for action sent to the Finnish Competition Authority on August 16th, 1999 concerning the Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI), which Weather Service Finland Ltd (WSF) believes has abused its dominant position by deliberately adding erroneous information (ground echoes) on radar image data for the Scandinavian radar composite product included in the ECOMET Product Catalogue, and by refusing delivery of certain obervations.

Degradation of radar images

Since June 1998, WSF has bought the product of Scandinavian radar composite from the ECOMET Catalogue. The delivery is through the Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute, the data provider of WSF. In June, 1999, erroneous echoes started to appear in the area of the Finnish radar coverage, which WSF first thought were from natural sources. To our great surprise, our data provider let us know that FMI is adding this information to the correct radar pictures deliberately, thus reducing the quality of the radar composite over the Finnish area. WSF tried first to solve the problem by negotiating with FMI, but without success. FMI offered as their solution to sell WSF the correct pictures at a higher price. For their own radar customers, FMI has been delivering correct data throughout this incident.

WSF's customers also recognised the poor quality of the radar pictures during the summer, when the problem of extra ground clutter added in the pictures was exceptionally bad. In early August WSF got a request from one customer to pay some compensation. The current situation may also threaten some of WSF's contracts in the future, if the quality is not improved back to the normal level.

As this matter got so serious, WSF had no other alternative but approach Finnish Competition Authority, who recommended WSF to make a formal request for action. This was done on August 16th, 1999. The request also includes the information we have received from SMHI that ECOMET may in the future decide on higher prices by means of changing the pricing rule structure for radar pictures which may be another reason to accuse FMI on abuse of dominant position. So far WSF has not received any written confirmation on these new rules, though these have been requested from SMHI and ECOMET several times during 1998 and 1999.

Proposal as of June 2, 2000 by the Finnish Competition Authority to the Finnish Competition Council, signed by Matti Purasjoki, Director-in-Chief and Jussi Pääkkönen, Researcher:
Abuse of dominant market position by the Finnish Meteorological Institute

The Competition Authority proposes that the Competition Council:
1) Recognizes that the Finnish Meteorological Institute as a producer and distributor of meteorological data holds on the basis of §3 (2) of the Act of Competitive Restrictions a dominant position on the Finnish national market for meteorological data.
2) recognises that the Finnish Meteorological Institute has abused its dominant market position on the Finnish national market for meteorological data in a manner prohibited by §7 (1) and §7 (2) of the Act of Competitive Restrictions by reducing between June 1999 and December 1999 the quality of the radar images delivered for inclusion in the Scandinavian radar composites.
3) imposes on the Finnish Meteorological Institute because of the abuse of its dominant market position referred to above and on the basis of §8 of the Act of Competitive Restrictions a competition infringement fine, which is proposed by the Competition Authority to amount to 200,000 Finnish markka (EUR 33,637).
Regulations Applied: Act on Competition Restrictions (480/1992), Art. 3(2), Art. 7(1)-(2) and Art. 8.