Thursday, November 13, 2003, the ANRC President Decision no.1331/2003 on the Establishment of the Procedure for the Resolution of Disputes within the Competences of the National Regulatory Authority for Communications and the ANRC President Decision no.1332/2003 on Reporting Several Statistical Data to the Providers of Electronic Communications Networks and Services entered into force. Both decisions were published in the Romanian Official Journal, Part I, no. 789 of November 10, 2003 and entered into force, in conformity with the Romanian Constitution, three days after their publication.
The first decision regulates the preliminary administrative-legal procedure for the resolution of disputes between the providers of electronic communications services or networks or between the postal services providers, disputes that fall within the competence of ANRC, as well as the mediation procedure for disputes between the users and postal services providers, the end users and the providers of electronic communications networks or services, respectively. Based on the adoption of this decision, the ANRC President Decision no.139/2002 on the Establishment of the Procedure for the Resolution of Disputes within the Competence of the National Regulatory Authority for Communications, published in the Romanian Official Journal, Part 1, no. 20 of January, 2003 is abrogated.
The new decision stipulates that in the case of a dispute between providers of electronic communications networks or services or postal services providers relating to the obligations placed upon them according to the legislation within the electronic communications and postal services sector, the interested party may file a request to ANRC for settling the dispute. In addition, ANRC can act as mediator in the case of a dispute between the users and the postal services providers, the end users and providers of electronic communications networks and services.
In the case of disputes between the providers of electronic communications networks and services or the postal services providers, after the request is registered, depending on the nature and complexity of the dispute, the ANRC President designates a Commission responsible with its settlement. This commission initiates a preliminary analysis of the documents provided by the parties and conducts the dispute settlement procedure. The mediation procedure cannot exceed the period of 30 days from the date ANRC was informed. If the parties do not reach any agreement before this deadline, the dispute shall be settled though contentious procedure. Both the mediation and the contentious procedure are optional and free of charge.
According to the ANRC President Decision on Reporting Several Statistical Data by the Electronic Communications Networks and Services Providers, the providers of electronic communications services and networks will have the obligation to periodically send to ANRC certain statistical data – financial data or data referring to the networks and services they make available to the consumers. These data will offer ANRC the possibility to supervise and control the application of the provisions of the normative acts in force, but will also constitute the basis for the reports, studies or analyses on the electronic communications sector the authority will elaborate.
The financial data and the information on the personnel will be sent to ANRC no later than 30 days from the deadline for the submission of the annual financial statements and, respectively, of the biannual accounting reports, to the territorial units of the Ministry for Public Finances. The information on the networks and services includes, among others, data referring to the number of subscribers, the tariffs charged, the traffic conveyed through its own network or through other networks on the wholesale or retail markets and will be submitted biannually, on January 31, for the reporting period from July 1 to December 31 and on July 31, for the reporting period from January to June 30.
The two decisions are available for consultation on ANRC Internet page.