Today, during the Regional Meeting in Craiova, which gathered more than 120 providers of electronic communications networks and services and postal service providers from the counties of Arges, Dolj, Gorj, Mehedinti, Olt, Teleorman and Valcea, the National Authority for Management and Regulation in Communications (ANCOM) has made public its proposed 2011 Action Plan.
In the frequency spectrum field, ANCOM will finalise the Study regarding the impact of 900MHz frequency band use for the supply of third generation electronic communication services using UMTS systems on mobile communication market competition, will assess the magnitude of the competition distortions in effect of the uneven allocation of the 900 MHz band in consideration of the liberalisation of its use, and will identify the optimum solutions for solving the identified competitive distortions.
As well, ANCOM will amend the second legislation in the radio spectrum field, by reviewing the procedure for the request and award of the licences for the use of radio frequencies, and, depending on the Government’s strategy, will implement the measures required in view of the digital switchover.
Once the Law on the infrastructure of electronic communications networks is adopted, ANCOM will exercise its new duties according to this normative act. Under the current form, the draft law provides that ANCOM shall have a series of attributions such as: to hold the record of networks and associated infrastructure, to create and make available to the public – on its website – a database including the terms of access on public property, to elaborate a standard-contract of access on private property, to control and monitor the obligations incumbent on the public institutions pursuant to the new legal provisions, to assess and sanction the contraventions. As well, in order to inform the providers, the local authorities, the associations and other parties interested in aspects related to the implementation of this law, ANCOM plans to organise national and local seminaries.
Modelling efficient costs for a number of regulated services (including fixed and mobile call termination) represents one of the most important projects ANCOM will initiate in 2011, within the purpose of fostering competition in the electronic communications field.
In order to promote the end-users’ interests, ANCOM will carry on implementing the regulations on the services within the scope of Universal Service in the field of electronic communications and postal services and will develop online applications to enable comparison among the communications offers and measure the quality technical parameters for the Internet access services.
Furthermore, in order to protect the users, ANCOM intends to define the quality parameters for the retransmission of audio-visual media programmes, applicable in the relationship with the end-users, as well as to elaborate a guide on the minimum provisions to be included in the contracts concluded between the electronic communications providers and the end-users. Further, in 2011, ANCOM will monitor the providers’ compliance with the obligation to adequately inform their users on the communications services they provide.
The ANCOM Action Plan proposed for 2011 is available for consultation here. The interested persons are invited to send their comments and suggestions, by 06.12.2010, at the ANCOM headquarters in 2 Delea Noua Street, Bucharest 3, or directly to the Registry. Comments and recommendations may also be sent by fax to +40 372 845 402 or by e-mail to consultare@ancom.org.ro.