Consultative Council – Deregulating Voice Services

Today, January 22, 2024, a meeting of the ANCOM Consultative Council board was held, mainly dedicated to the following two draft decisions, according to the agenda:

1. Draft decision on the security of public electronic communications networks and electronic communications services intended for the public;
2. Draft decision on the relevant markets in the electronic communications sector corresponding to voice call termination services at fixed points, respectively corresponding to voice call termination services at mobile points, as well as the withdrawal of existing individual obligations.

For project no. 2 there were submissions from the industry, submissions in which stakeholders expressed concern that deregulation could delay the conclusion of interconnection agreements (as there will no longer be obligations regarding the negotiation period and/or ancillary service tariffs).

The submissions were rejected on grounds that once the market analysis has shown the conditions for regulation are no longer met, there is no longer any legal basis for the regulation, except for a transitional period. Any dysfunctions should subsequently be dealt with punctually, according to competition law. This project was considered adopted.

Project no. 1. generated wider discussions, the intervening operators emphasizing aspects such as:

• The need for careful, accurate defining – of the network elements for which the implementation of electrical backup is to be imposed, taking into account the fact that some network elements (equipment) are normally disconnected in critical cases – precisely to extend the operating time on batteries for the remaining equipment;
• Focusing efforts towards providing basic services (for example: voice and data), instead of the obligation to keep all network elements connected;
• Extending the regime applicable to county capitals and to other large cities, which have similar characteristics;
• The need to ensure communication with electrical network operators, to speed up power reconnection in case of interruption.

For this project, ANCOM is still waiting for concrete formulations from the interested providers of electronic communications networks and services, based on the published draft.