Italy

[IT] Incentives for T-DVB and C-DVB Decoders and Broadband Access

IRIS 2004-3:1/25

Maja Cappello

Autorità per le garanzie nelle comunicazioni (AGCOM)

On 24 December 2003, the Italian Parliament adopted the national budget for 2004 (Disposizioni per la formazione del bilancio annuale e pluriennale dello Stato (legge finanziaria 2004), Act of 24 December 2003, no. 350) and set up a fund for the promotion of purchases or rentals of decoders for cable and terrestrial digital television (C-DVB and T-DVB) sold or rented from 1 January 2004 and contracts for broadband access to the Internet signed after 1 December 2003. In the first case, the public contribution is of EUR 150 per consumer out of a total fund of EUR 110 million, and in the second case, EUR 75 out of a total fund of EUR 30 million, but in no case can any consumer benefit from both contributions.

The procedural terms have been established by a decree of the Minister of Communications of 30 December 2003.

To benefit from T-and C-DVB decoder incentives, consumers must have paid the appropriate annual fee to the public service broadcaster and get the decoder at the same time as they sign the contract for the services. For this purpose, contributions are given to interested consumers through the stores providing the services and having access to a special database served by the Ministry of Communications, where it is possible to verify that the annual fee has been paid and that no consumer gets more than one contribution. The discount on the price of the decoder is applied immediately in case of purchase, provided that the price of the decoder is higher than EUR 150, and gradually on the bills in case of rental. Contributions for broadband access are furnished directly to consumers by electronic communications' operators who apply them immediately in case of purchase of the apparatuses and as a discount on the bills in case of rental. The Ministry of Communications provides for reimbursement to the stores and operators concerned.