ANCOM organized two meetings of the Consultative Council on 8 and 9 February 2023 to discuss a series of draft decisions that update the secondary legislation in the field of electronic communications. These secondary regulations were reviewed for bringing them in line with the current provisions of the Government Emergency Ordinance no. 111/2011 on electronic communications, as amended and supplemented by Law no. 198/2022 on the amendment and completion of some normative acts in the field of electronic communications and for the establishment of measures to facilitate the development of electronic communications networks.
Numbering resources and number portability
Regarding the draft ANCOM decision for the amendment and completion of some normative acts in the field of numbering resources, the main amendments adopted refer to the making available, in the National Numbering Plan, of a series of nongeographic numbers that can be used for the provision of machine-to-machine services, throughout the European Union. At the same time, a series of simplification measures of an administrative/procedural nature have been taken following the experience acquired by the Authority in the management and administration of numbering resources.
In the field of number portability, ANCOM adopted measures on granting compensation in case of the providers’ non-compliance with certain obligations during the porting process, extending the period during which a subscriber benefits from the porting right, removing the possibility of charging porting fees by acceptor providers, the submission of the porting request by means of distance communication, the assignment of temporary numbers and the modalities of informing end-users.
Obligations to inform end-users and other measures to protect them
The adopted draft decision lays down obligations on providers regarding the items of information to be made available to end-users for them to be able to make informed decisions, the minimum information to be included in the itemized bills, the format and modalities of notifying a provider’s intention to unilaterally modify the contract. The decision also lays down the rules for granting compensation to the subscribers affected by non-compliance with the legal obligations regarding the transfer from one fixed internet access services provider to another and by non-compliance with the schedules established for installing, respectively for recovering and restoring the fixed internet access service during the transfer process.
Regulations dedicated to disabled users
Concerning access to electronic communications services for persons with disabilities, the Decision includes a series of measures to raise the degree of their information, using means that are specific to their needs. At the same time, taking into account the need to adapt the tariff packages offered on the market to the consumption needs of people with sight, respectively hearing and/or speech disabilities, ANCOM adopted two configurations of service packages containing a minimum amount of consumption units, at maximum tariffs recommended to be charged by providers.
General authorisation regime for the provision of electronic communications networks and services
Notifying the intention to provide public electronic communications networks or publicly available electronic communications services is limited to a statement of notification, while the general authorisation procedure was simplified taking into account the european approaches in the field, the simplified conditions at the level of central public administration, the society digitization process and, last but not least, the experience gained by the Authority as a result of the application of the current legal norms.
Thus, in view of the single European template for notifying the intention to provide public electronic communications networks or publicly available electronic communications services, a new standard notification form was adopted. It shall contain the details necessary to identify the applicant and to ensure easy communication between the applicant and the Authority, as well as the new classification of electronic communications networks and services, together with the set of information necessary to produce a brief description of the network or service for which the authorisation is requested.
Structural and content changes were also adopted to the General Authorisation for the provision of electronic communications networks and services as a result of the establishment, in accordance with the primary legislation, of exhaustive conditions for the provision of electronic communications networks and/or services, with the exception of number-independent interpersonal communications services.
The adoption of the new notification form shall entail the updating of information on networks and services by all providers of public electronic communications networks or of publicly available electronic communications services.
However, in order to meet the providers' needs, as well as to ensure a rigorous and uniform interpretation regarding the classification of the types of electronic communications networks and services, within 30 days from the date of entry into force of the decision, ANCOM will send by electronic means, to each provider, the classification of their provided services according to the new standard notification form, for all types of networks and services already notified to ANCOM prior to the entry into force of this Decision. To the extent that changes are needed regarding the Authority’s classification, each provider has the obligation to duly fill in and submit the standard notification form to ANCOM, by 31 May 2023, otherwise the classification thus communicated by ANCOM to each provider will be validated as such.
