On Friday, June 24, 2005, the President of the National Regulatory Authority for Communications, Mr. Dan Cristian Georgescu, and the ANRC Vice-President, Ms. Alexandrina Hîrtan, participated in a meeting with the communications industry in South-East Romania, held in Constanta. This event is part of a series of regional ANRC meetings with the industry representatives, meant to establish direct dialogue and to identify the difficulties encountered by the electronic communications providers.
This second meeting of the ANRC Caravan assembled approximately 70 providers in the counties of: Braila, Buzau, Calarasi, Constanta, Dâmbovita, Giurgiu, Ialomita, Prahova, Teleorman and Tulcea. The discussions between the industry representatives and the ANRC delegation focused on the main concerns of the participating companies, i.e. universal service, monitoring tariff, market development and the ANRC role and initiatives. The providers highlighted issues regarding the access to infrastructure and the rights of way, and approached practical topics such as the payment of the monitoring tariff owed to ANRC. The ANRC President pointed out that the draft law amending the method of calculation of the monitoring tariff, initiated by ANRC and MCTI, was approved by the Senate, passed in the speciality commission of the Chamber of Deputies, and would be submitted to general debate in the Chamber of Deputies for the final vote.
Furthermore, the participants discussed practical aspects of the relation between the Authority and the providers from the South-Eastern region of Romania: the notification procedure, the providers’ rights and obligations, the possibility of addressing ANRC for dispute settlement, the Authority’s availability to provide information on concrete matters, the public consultation procedure. The providers proposed amendments to the Fiscal Procedure Code in order to facilitate the payment of the monitoring tariff to ANRC.
514 companies are authorised to provide electronic communications services in South-East Romania, i.e. 17% of the total number of such providers authorised by ANRC. Out of these, 224 notified their intention to provide public networks, 27 – telephone services, 110 – Internet access services.
In Constanta, there are 19 active providers of services for the re-transmission of audio-visual programmes (CATV), while the number of such companies in Dambovita is even greater – 28 active providers. As well, the inhabitants of Constanta county may use the postal services of 34 active providers.
The penetration rate of fixed telephony in the South-Eastern region of Romania is 17.5%, the first two highest penetration rates being registered in Constanta – 23.07% and Prahova – 22.34%. Moreover, in Constanta city there are 6 alternative providers of telephone services.
ANRC also presented the industry one of the mechanisms which may ensure the access of the rural areas deprived of telephone connections to the telecommunications infrastructure, which is a vital element for the development of private investments and incentive for economic growth. Thus, the installation of telecentres will ensure the access of the people living in isolated communities to telephone and Internet access services, as well as to other modern communications means. In 2004, approximately 100 telecentres are forecast to be installed throughout Romania.
In order to ensure the implementation of universal service in the electronic communications sector through the installation of telecentres, ANRC initiated an information campaign for the local authorities in the localities deprived of telephone connections, increasing these authorities’ awareness of their possibilities of getting involved in the development of this project, together with the providers of electronic communications networks. In the whole country, 1200 rural localities have been envisaged for the installation of telecentres in 2005.