Brussels, 29 March 2002
The European Commission is in the process of preparing a recommendation identifying areas of the telecommunications sector where it believes regulatory obligations should be imposed.
The recommendation will include a list of telecommunications products and services markets in which the Commission believes competition is not effective, and which should therefore be subject to regulation. The recommendation will target national regulatory authorities, which will be responsible for identifying dominant enterprises in the specified markets and seeing that these firms comply with obligations to ensure effective competition.
The obligations will range from 'non-discrimination' measures to more binding requirements such as tariffs according to costs. It is expected that these provisions will be progressively withdrawn as competition develops, leaving the sector subject only to competition rules.
The Commission intends to consult both national regulatory authorities and the companies in question before publishing its recommendation, to ensure that all stakeholders have the opportunity to offer their opinions on the issue.