The European Commission implemented a new regulatory framework aimed at harmonizing the policies and enforcing the legal certainty of laws pertaining to electronic communications across the member states of the European Union. The new regulatory framework, which went into effect on 25-July-2003, gives the European Commission powers to oversee the national regulatory regimes of member states through a consultative process with their national regulatory authorities (NRA). This consultative process will take place through the European Regulators Group. The EC said its aims for a lighter but comprehensive and technology-neutral regulatory telecommunications environment founded on competition law principles. The new framework seeks to streamline the entire regulatory process by limiting ex ante regulation to what is strictly necessary and by rendering the regulatory process as transparent as possible.
The European Regulators Group (ERG) is composed of the heads of each national regulatory agency, e.g., Autorité de Régulation des Télécommunications (France), Regulierungsbehoerde für Telekommunikation und Post (Germany), and Commission for Communications Regulation (Ireland). The ERG held its inaugural meeting in Brussels in October 2002. Jens Arnbak, Chairman of OPTA in the Netherlands, was elected Chairman of the Group. Among the issues currently under discussion is the adoption of a common policy that ensures bitstream access to broadband networks, especially the DSL networks of incumbent operators. A public consultation on the matter was begun earlier this month.
The European Commission noted that five of its Member States have already taken the necessary action to transpose the new framework into their national laws (Finland, Denmark, Sweden, United Kingdom, and Ireland). A number of other states, in particular Italy, are close behind. The EC warns that latecomers to adopt the common framework risk infringement proceedings if action is not taken rapidly.
In a speech last week, Mario Monti, the EC's Commissioner for Competition, affirmed his belief that "the development of competition is the best way to ensure that electronic communications markets can prosper and be an important engine for the Union's economic development." As a result of anti-trust actions and with the support of the new framework, Monti argued that competition is establishing itself in the European telecom market. To ensure the success of a competitive telecom market, the EC vows to act in partnership with the national competition and regulatory authorities of each member state. Marion Monti noted that currently there are an estimated 200 operators in most member states delivering national and international voice calls. He credits this level of competition with the average 45% reduction in the cost of a fixed line telephone call over the past three years.
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