Bouygues Telecom appealed a decision made by the Paris Commercial Court which ruled the operator pay rival Free Mobile €308 million in damages, following a legal dispute over handset subsidies.

Free Mobile had targeted rivals Orange and Bouygues Telecom in a legal battle spanning several years over the pair’s handset subsidy offerings, which it claimed bind customers into a long-term commitment with a single operator. It initially sought damages worth €1.5 billion from both companies.

In 2018, the Iliad subsidiary won a legal case on the status of handset subsidies as a consumer credit facility and moved to sue Orange shortly after.

Meanwhile, Bouygues Telecom argued its “bundled offers are legal” and that the company acted “in strict compliance with the law”, disputing the court’s order to pay a €308 million penalty “in the strongest possible terms”.

The operator added the authority had initiated the proceedings within an inappropriate timeline and said it will be taking the case to the Paris Court of Appeal.