Any person who suspects that an undertaking in the telecommunications or broadcasting sector has contravened, is contravening, or is about to contravene a competition rule under the Competition Ordinance can lodge his/her complaint with the CA.

In lodging a competition complaint with the CA, please refer to the Guideline on Complaints which describes the manner and form in which complaints may be made. The Guideline also incorporates information on the processes the CA will use for determining what action to take in relation to a complaint or query.

How to Complain

To assist the CA in assessing the matter, a complainant should submit any information that he/she has or has access to, and is encouraged to provide as much of the following information as possible:

1. a description of the relevant facts regarding the conduct the Complainant is concerned about;
2. information on any documents that relate to the conduct including copies of those documents where possible;
3. information about the party or parties involved in the conduct, including their contact information where known;
4. if applicable, information concerning the impact of the conduct on the complainant;
5. if applicable, information about other parties affected by the conduct, including information on how those parties are affected and contact information where known; and
6. other information about the complainant, including their name, job title, address, telephone and email address.

The complaint may be submitted (1) by filling in the Online Complaint Form, or (2) directly through one of the following ways -

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What are the types of conduct prohibited by the Competition Ordinance?
   
   

   Three competition rules are established under the CO prohibiting anti-competitive conduct –

   • The first conduct rule prohibits anti-competitive agreements, decisions or concerted practices;
   • The second conduct rule prohibits the abuse of a substantial degree of market power; and
   • The merger rule prohibits mergers involving telecommunications carrier licensees which have, or are likely to have, the effect of substantially lessening competition in Hong Kong.

   For details, please refer to the Guideline on the First Conduct Rule, Guideline on the Second Conduct Rule and Guideline on the Merger Rule.
2. If I want to lodge a complaint against a telecommunications or broadcasting operator, which authority should I go to?

   Under the CO, the CA is conferred concurrent jurisdiction with the Commission to enforce the CO in respect of the conduct of certain undertakings operating in the telecommunications and broadcasting sectors. The CA and the Commission have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to coordinate the performance of their functions on which they have concurrent jurisdiction. According to MoU, for cases involving the telecommunications or broadcasting sectors and falling within the concurrent jurisdiction, the CA will ordinarily take the role of the lead authority which will assume responsibility for exercising the relevant powers and functions conferred upon it under the CO. For matters involving issues that are partly within and partly outside the concurrent jurisdiction, the CA and the Commission will discuss and agree on how best to progress the matter on a case-by-case basis.

   Therefore, if any person would like to lodge a complaint in connection with suspected anti-competitive conduct of a telecommunications or broadcasting operator, he/she can lodge the complaint with the CA.

   If a complaint is lodged to one authority but in fact should be handed by the other authority, the authority which has received the complaint will refer the complaint to the other authority to handle pursuant to the MoU.

3. Will the CA pursue all the complaints received?

   The CA will look at every case received. However, the CA has a discretion whether to commence an investigation on a complaint. The CA is not required to investigate a complaint if it does not consider it reasonable to do so, in particular where the complaint is trivial, frivolous or vexatious, or the complaint is misconceived or lacking in substance. On the other hand, the CA may investigate a complaint even where the complainant no longer wishes to pursue the complaint. Please refer to the Guideline on Complaints for details.

4. Will the complainant be informed of the result of the complaint?

   If the CA decides to take no further action or recommends the complainant refer his/her concerns to another agency, the CA will provide an explanation of this outcome to the complainant in writing. If the CA reviews a complaint further, it will endeavour to keep the complainant generally informed as the matter progresses. However, it is unlikely for the CA to advice a complainant of internal procedural steps taken. Please refer to the Guideline on Complaints for details.

5. Will my identity as the complainant be protected?

   The CA will not normally disclose the complainant’s identity, without the complainant’s consent. However, in some exceptional cases, it may be necessary to disclose the complainant’s identity without their consent. This includes where disclosure is ordered by the courts or under section 126(1)(b) of the CO where the CA considers it necessary to make a disclosure in the performance of its functions or in carrying into effect or doing anything authorised by the CO. Please refer to the Guideline on Complaints for details.