Telecoms Package Universal Service ECON Opinion

Telecoms Package: Directive on universal service and users' rights relating to electronic communications networks and services (Universal Service 2002/22/EC) − European Parliament Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs Opinion − 2008-06-03

Article 20
Article 20 − Contracts

1. This Article shall apply without prejudice to Community rules on consumer protection, in particular Directives 93/13/EC and 97/7/EC, and national rules in conformity with Community law.

2. Member States shall ensure that, where subscribing to services providing connection to a public communications network and/or publicly available telephone services, consumers have a right to a contract with an undertaking or undertakings providing such services and/or connection. The contract shall specify at least:

(a) the identity and address of the supplier;

(b) the services provided, the service quality levels offered, as well as the time for the initial connection;

(c) the types of maintenance service offered;

(d) particulars of prices and tariffs and the means by which up-to-date information on all applicable tariffs and maintenance charges may be obtained;

(e) the duration of the contract, the conditions for renewal and termination of services and of the contract, including direct costs for portability of numbers and other identifiers;

(f) any compensation and the refund arrangements which apply if contracted service quality levels are not met;

(g) the method of initiating procedures for settlement of disputes in accordance with Article 34;

(h) the action that might be taken by the undertaking providing connection and/or services in reaction to security or integrity incidents or threats and vulnerabilities.

Member States may extend these obligations to cover other end-users.

3. The information listed in paragraph 2 shall also be included in contracts concluded between consumers and electronic communications services providers other than those providing connection to a public communications network and/or publicly available telephone services. Member States may extend this obligation to cover other end-users.

4. Member States shall ensure that where contracts are concluded between subscribers and undertakings providing electronic communications services that allow voice communication, subscribers are clearly informed whether or not access to emergency services is provided. Providers of electronic communications services shall ensure that customers are clearly informed of the lack of access to emergency services in advance of the conclusion of a contract and regularly thereafter.

5. Member States shall ensure that where contracts are concluded between subscribers and undertakings providing electronic communications services and/or networks, subscribers are clearly informed in advance of the conclusion of a contract and regularly thereafter of any limitations imposed by the provider on their ability to access or distribute lawful content or run any lawful applications and services of their choice.

6. Member States shall ensure that where contracts are concluded between subscribers and undertakings providing electronic communications services and/or networks, subscribers are clearly informed in advance of the conclusion of the contract and regularly thereafter of their obligations to respect copyright and related rights. Without prejudice to Directive 2000/31/EC on electronic commerce, this includes the obligation to inform subscribers of the most common acts of infringements and their legal consequences.

6a. Member States shall ensure freedom of choice for consumers and shall provide an adequate level of protection against products that unduly restrict that freedom, such as contracts of unreasonably long duration, product tying, and fees or penalties for changing provider.

7. Subscribers shall have a right to withdraw from their contracts without penalty upon notice of modifications in the contractual conditions proposed by operators. Subscribers shall be given adequate notice, not shorter than one month, ahead of any such modifications and shall be informed at the same time of their right to withdraw, without penalty, from such contracts, if they do not accept the new conditions.

''(14) A competitive market should ensure that end-users are able to access and distribute any lawful content and to use any lawful applications and/or services of their choice, as stated in Article 8 of Directive 2002/21/EC. Given the increasing importance of electronic communications for consumers and businesses, users should in any case be fully informed of any restrictions and/or limitations imposed on the use of electronic communications services by the service and/or network provider. Where there is a lack of effective competition, national regulatory authorities should use the remedies available to them in Directive 2002/19/EC to ensure that users' access to particular types of content or applications is not unreasonably restricted.''

Article 21
Article 21 − Transparency and publication of information

1. Member States shall ensure that transparent, comparable, adequate and up-to date information on applicable prices and tariffs, and on standard terms and conditions, is available to end-users and consumers, in accordance with the provisions of Annex II. Such information shall be published in an easily accessible form.

2. Member States shall ensure that undertakings providing public electronic communications networks and/or services publish comparable, adequate and up-to-date information on applicable prices and tariffs in respect of access and use of their services provided to consumers. Such information shall be published in an easily accessible form.

3. National regulatory authorities shall encourage the provision of information to enable end-users and consumers to make an independent evaluation of the cost of alternative usage patterns, by means of interactive guides or similar techniques. Member States shall ensure that national regulatory authorities make such guides or techniques available, when these are not available on the market. Third parties shall have a right to use without charge the tariffs published by undertakings providing electronic communications networks and/or services, for the purposes of selling or making available such interactive guides or similar techniques.

4. Member States shall ensure that national regulatory authorities are able to oblige undertakings providing electronic communications services to provide applicable tariff information to customers at the time and point of purchase to ensure that customers are fully informed of pricing conditions.

5. Member States shall ensure that national regulatory authorities are able to oblige undertakings providing electronic communications services and/or networks to provide information required in accordance with Article 20(5) to customers in a clear, comprehensive and easily accessible form.

6. In order to ensure that end-users can benefit from a consistent approach to tariff transparency, as well as to the provision of information in accordance with Article 20(5) in the Community, the Commission may, having consulted the European Electronic Communications Market Authority (hereinafter referred to as “the Authority”), take the appropriate technical implementing measures in this area, such as specify the methodology or procedures. Those measures, designed to amend non-essential elements of this Directive by supplementing it, shall be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in Article 37(2).

Article 22
Article 22 − Quality of service

1. Member States shall ensure that national regulatory authorities are, after taking account of the views of interested parties, able to require undertakings that provide publicly available electronic communications networks and/or services to publish comparable, adequate and up-to-date information for end-users on the quality of their services, including equivalent access for disabled end-users. The information shall, on request, also be supplied to the national regulatory authority in advance of its publication.

2. National regulatory authorities may specify, inter alia, the quality of service parameters to be measured, and the content, form and manner of information to be published, in order to ensure that end-users have access to comprehensive, comparable and user-friendly information. Where appropriate, the parameters, definitions and measurement methods given in Annex III could be used.

3. In order to prevent degradation of service and slowing of traffic over networks, the Commission may, having consulted the Authority, adopt technical implementing measures concerning minimum quality of service requirements to be set by the national regulatory authority on undertakings providing public communications networks. Those measures, designed to amend non-essential elements of this Directive by supplementing it, shall be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in Article 37(2).

Article 28
Article 28 − Access to numbers and services

1. Member States shall ensure that national regulatory authorities take all necessary steps to ensure that:

(a) end-users are able to access and use services, including information society services, provided within the Community; and

(b) end-users are able to access all numbers provided in the Community, including those in the national numbering plans of Member States, those from the European Telephone Numbering Space and Universal International Freephone Numbers.

National regulatory authorities shall be able to block on a case-by-case basis access to numbers or services where this is justified by reasons of fraud or misuse.

2. In order to ensure that end users have effective access to numbers and services in the Community, the Commission may, having consulted the Authority, adopt technical implementing measures. Those measures, designed to amend non-essential elements of this Directive by supplementing it, shall be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in Article 37(2).

Any such technical implementing measure may be periodically reviewed to take account of market and technological developments.

''(22) A single market implies that end-users are able to access all numbers included in the national numbering plans of other Member States, and to access services, including Information Society services, using non-geographic numbers within the Community, including among others freephone and premium rate numbers. End-users should also be able to access numbers from the European Telephone Numbering Space (ETNS) and universal international freephone numbers (UIFN). Cross-border access to numbering resources and to the associated service should not be prevented except in objectively justified cases, such as when this is necessary to combat fraud, and abuse e.g. in connection with certain premium-rate services, or when the number is defined as having a national scope only (e.g. national short code). Users should be fully informed in advance in a clear manner of any charges applicable to freephone numbers, such as international call charges for numbers accessible through standard international dialling codes. In order to ensure that end-users have effective access to numbers and services in the Community, the Commission should be able to adopt implementing measures.''

Article 33
Article 33 − Consultation with interested parties

1. Member States shall ensure as far as appropriate that national regulatory authorities take account of the views of end-users, and consumers (including, in particular, disabled users), manufacturers, undertakings that provide electronic communications networks and/or services on issues related to all end-user and consumer rights concerning publicly available electronic communications services, in particular where they have a significant impact on the market.

In particular, Member States shall ensure that national regulatory authorities establish a consultation mechanism ensuring that in their decision-making process due consideration is given to consumer interests in electronic communications.

2. Where appropriate, interested parties may develop, with the guidance of national regulatory authorities, mechanisms, involving consumers, user groups and service providers, to improve the general quality of service provision by, inter alia, developing and monitoring codes of conduct and operating standards.

3. Member States shall submit a yearly report to the Commission on the measures taken and the progress towards improving interoperability and use of, and access to, electronic communications services and terminal equipment by users in general and by disabled end-users in particular. Due consideration shall be taken of the policy objectives and regulatory principles set out in Article 8 of Directive 2002/21/EC.

4. Without prejudice to the application of Directive 1999/5/EC and in particular of disability requirements pursuant to its Article 3(3) (f), and in order to improve accessibility to electronic communications services and equipment by disabled end-users, the Commission may, having consulted the Authority, take the appropriate technical implementing measures to address the issues raised in the report referred to in paragraph 3, following a public consultation. Those measures, designed to amend non-essential elements of this Directive by supplementing it, shall be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in Article 37(2).

''(25) In order to overcome existing shortcomings in terms of consumer consultation and appropriately address the interests of citizens, Member States should put in place an appropriate consultation mechanism. Such a mechanism could take the form of a body which would, independently from the national regulatory authority as well as from service providers, carry out research on consumer-related issues, such as consumer behaviour and mechanisms for changing suppliers, and which would operate in a transparent manner and contribute to the existing mechanisms for stakeholders' consultation. Where there is a need to address the facilitation of the access to and use of electronic communications services and terminal equipment for disabled users, and without prejudice to Directive 1999/5/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 March 1999 on radio equipment and telecommunications terminal equipment and the mutual recognition of their conformity (OJ L 91, 7.4.1999, p. 10. Directive as amended by Regulation (EC) No 1882/2003 of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 284, 31.10.2003, p. 1).) and in particular the disability requirements pursuant to its Article 3(3)(f), the Commission should be able to adopt implementing measures.''

Article 34
Article 34 − Out-of-court dispute resolution

1. Member States shall ensure that transparent, simple and inexpensive out-of-court procedures are available for dealing with unresolved disputes between consumers and undertakings providing electronic communications networks and/or services, relating to the contractual conditions and/or performance of contracts concerning supply of such networks or services. Member States shall adopt measures to ensure that such procedures enable disputes to be settled fairly and promptly and may, where warranted, adopt a system of reimbursement and/or compensation. Member States may extend these obligations to cover disputes involving other end-users.

Member States shall ensure that bodies in charge of dealing with such disputes provide relevant information for statistical purposes to the Commission and the Authority.

2. Member States shall ensure that their legislation does not hamper the establishment of complaints offices and the provision of on-line services at the appropriate territorial level to facilitate access to dispute resolution by consumers and end-users.

3. Where such disputes involve parties in different Member States, Member States shall coordinate their efforts with a view to bringing about a resolution of the dispute.

4. This Article is without prejudice to national court procedures.