Romania

[RO] Communications Networks and Services Authorisation Underway

IRIS 2010-8:1/43

Eugen Cojocariu

Radio Romania International

As stated by the Autoritatea Naţională pentru Reglementare şi Administrare în Comunicaţii (National Authority for Administration and Regulation in Communications - ANCOM) on 2 August 2010, 228 providers have been authorised according to a new Decision on the General Authorisation Regime for the Provision of Electronic Communications Networks and Services (Decision no. 338/2010).

In order to remain active on the market, providers need to complete again the general authorisation procedure, by no later than 31 December 2010. Otherwise, they will automatically lose their capacity as providers.

The Decision no. 338/2010 (published in the Official Journal of Romania no. 347/26.05.2010) came into force recently. The document had to be issued in order to update, consolidate and/or revise the general authorisation regime due to legal, technical and technological evolutions in this field after the adoption of the Emergency Government Decree no. 79/2002 (revised), which contains the Regulatory Framework for Communications.

Decision no. 338/2010 includes provisions with regard to:

- the rules concerning foreign persons (which are only allowed to provide temporary communications services in Romania without founding a local branch, according to EU regulations),

- the regime for authorised individuals, family and individual enterprises,

- the suspension, termination or withdrawal of the right to provide electronic communications networks and services,

- the general, technical and compatibility conditions imposed on the electronic communications networks for re-broadcasting the audiovisual programmes services and for data transmission and Internet access services,

- the use of radio frequencies,

- the protection of the ANCOM's monitoring stations sites,

- the changes of the notification form the providers have to fill in and send to ANCOM and of

- the networks and services description sheet, regarding the protection of consumer's rights.