BETA

Activities of Christian ENGSTRÖM related to 2013/0309(COD)

Shadow opinions (1)

2016/11/22
Committee: IMCO
Dossiers: 2013/0309(COD)
Documents: PDF(788 KB) DOC(1009 KB)

Amendments (64)

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Recital 40

(40) Disparities in the national implementation of sector-specific end-user protection rules create significant barriers to the single digital market, in particular in the form of increased compliance costs for providers of electronic communications to the public wishing to offer services across Member States. Moreover, fragmentation and uncertainty as to the level of protection granted in different Member States undermines end-users' trust and dissuades them from purchasing electronic communications services abroad. In order to achieve the Union's objective to remove barriers to the internal market it is necessary to replace existing, divergent national legal measures with a smin~~gle and fu~~imally harmonised set of sector-specific rules which create a high common level of end- user protection. Such ~~full~~ harmonisation of the legal provisions should not prevent providers of electronic communications to the public from offering end-users contractual arrangements which go beyond that level of protection. Member States may also require higher levels of protection.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Recital 46

(46) The freedom of end-users to access and distribute information and lawful content, run applications and use services of their choice is subject to the respect of Union and compatible national law. This Regulation ~~defines the limits for any restrictions to this freedom by providers of electronic communications to the public but~~ is without prejudice to other Union legislation, including copyright rules and Directive 2000/31/EC.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Recital 49

(49) There is also end-user demand for services and applications requiring an enhanced level of assured service quality offered by providers of electronic communications to the public or by content, applications or service providers. Such services may comprise inter alia broadcasting via Internet Protocol (IP- TV), video-conferencing and certain health applications. End-users should therefore also be free to conclude agreements on the provision of specialised services with an enhanced quality of service with either providers of electronic communications to the public or providers of content, applications or services.deleted

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Recital 50

(50) In addition, there is demand on the part of content, applications and services providers, for the provision of transmission services based on flexible quality parameters, including lower levels of priority for traffic which is not time- sensitive. The possibility for content, applications and service providers to negotiate such flexible quality of service levels with providers of electronic communications to the public is ~~necessary for the provision of specialised services and is~~ expected to play an important role in the development of new services such as machine-to-machine (M2M) communications. At the same time such arrangements should allow providers of electronic communications to the public to better balance traffic and prevent network congestion. Providers of content, applications and services and providers of electronic communications to the public should therefore be free to conclude specialised services agreements on defined levels of quality of service as long as such agreements do not substantially impair the general quality of internet access services.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Recital 51

(51) National regulatory authorities play an essential role in ensuring that end-users are effectively able to exercise this freedom to avail of open internet access. To this end national regulatory authorities should have monitoring and reporting obligations, and ensure compliance of providers of electronic communications to the public and the availability of non-discriminatory internet access services of high quality ~~which are not impaired by specialised services~~. In their assessment of a possible general impairment of internet access services, national regulatory authorities should take account of quality parameters such as timing and reliability parameters (latency, jitter, packet loss), levels and effects of congestion in the network, actual versus advertised speeds~~, performance of internet access services compared with specialised services,~~ and quality as perceived by end-users. National regulatory authorities should be empowered to impose minimum quality of service requirements on all or individual providers of electronic communications to the public if this is necessary to prevent general impairment/degradation of the quality of service of internet access services.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Recital 52

(52) The measures to ensure better transparency and comparability of prices, tariffs, terms and conditions, and quality of service parameters including those specific to the provision of internet access services, should increase the ability of end-users to optimise their selection of providers and thus benefit fully from competition. Any voluntary certification scheme for interactive comparison websites, guides or similar tools shall be independent from any provider of electronic communications, use plain and clear language, use complete and up-to-date information, have transparent methodology, be reliable and accessibility according to Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 and have an effective complaints handling procedure.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Recital 56

(56) Contracts are an important means of giving end-users a high level of transparency of information and legal certainty. Providers of electronic communications to the public should give end-users clear and comprehensible information on all essential elements of the contract before the end-user is bound by the contract. The information should be mandatory and not be altered except by subsequent explicit agreement of the end- user and the provider. The Commission and several national regulatory authorities recently found considerable discrepancies between the advertised speed of internet access services and the speed actually available to end-users. Providers of electronic communications to the public should therefore inform end-users, prior to the conclusion of the contract, of the speed and other quality of service parameters which they can realistically deliver at the end- user's main location.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Recital 64

(64) Contracts with transferring providers of electronic communications to the public should be cancelled automatically after switching without any additional steps being required from end-users. In the case of pre-paid services any credit balance which has not been spent should be refunded to the switching consumer. The consumer may also request that any unused balance be transferred to the receiving telecommunications provider.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Recital 71

(71) In order to ensure consistency between the objective and the measures needed to complete the single market for electronic communications pursuant to this Regulation and some specific existing legislative provisions and to reflect key elements of evolving decisional practice, Directive 2002/21/EC, the Directives 2002/20/EC and 2002/22/EC and Regulation No 531/2012 should be amended. This includes making provision for Directive 2002/21/EC and the related Directives to be read in conjunction with this Regulation, the introduction of strengthened powers of the Commission in order to ensure consistency of remedies imposed on European electronic communications providers having significant market power in the context of the European consultation mechanism, harmonisation of the criteria adopted in assessing the definition and competitiveness of relevant markets, the adaptation of the notification system under Directive 2002/20/EC in view of the single EU authorisation as well as the repeal of provisions on minimum harmonisation of end-users rights provided in Directive 2002/22/EC made redundant by the ~~full~~ harmonisation provided in this Regulation.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Recital 76

(76) In addition, the significant reduction in mobile termination rates throughout the Union in the recent past should now allow the elimination of additional roaming charges for ~~incoming~~all calls.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Recital 80 a (new)

(80a) Where consent regarding data processing is given by the end-user, this consent should be informed, specific and unambiguous. This consent should not be a pre-requisite for the end-user's enjoyment of telecommunication services.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 3 a (new)

3a. The provisions of this Regulation are without prejudice to the Union acquis relating to data protection and Articles 7 and 8 of the Charter of Fundamental Human Rights.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 2 – point 15

(15) ‘specialised service’ means an electronic communications service or any other service that provides the capability to access specific content, applications or services, or a combination thereof, and whose technical characteristics are controlled from end-to-end or provides the capability to send or receive data to or from a determined number of parties or endpoints; and that is not marketed or widely used as a substitute for internet access service;deleted

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 21 – paragraph 2

2. Providers of electronic communications to the public shall not apply any discriminatory requirements or conditions of access or use to end-users based on the end-user's nationality or place of residence ~~unless such differences are objectively justified.~~

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 23 – title

Freedom to provide and right to avail of open internet access~~, and reasonable traffic management~~

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 23 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1

End-users shall have the right to be free to access and distribute information and content, run applications, connect hardware and use services and software of their choice via their internet access service. Internet access providers can thus not block, discriminate against, impair or degrade, including through price surcharge or preferential treatment, the ability of any person to use a service to access, use, send, post, receive or offer any content, application or service of their choice, irrespective of source or target. Providers of internet access services shall not make the prices of these services dependent on the content, applications and services that are offered or used via these internet access services.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 23 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1

End-users shall also be free to agree with either providers of electronic communications to the public or with providers of content, applications and services on the provision of specialised services with an enhanced quality of service.deleted

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 23 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 2

In order to enable the provision of specialised services to end-users, providers of content, applications and services and providers of electronic communications to the public shall be free to enter into agreements with each other to transmit the related data volumes or traffic as specialised services with a defined quality of service or dedicated capacity. The provision of specialised services shall not impair in a recurring or continuous manner the general quality of internet access services.deleted

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 23 – paragraph 3 a (new)

3a. All services offered by internet service providers shall be treated equally. Internet service providers shall not prioritise any service above any other.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 23 – paragraph 4

4. The exercise of the freedoms provided for in paragraphs 1 ~~and 2~~ shall be facilitated by the provision of complete information in accordance with Article 25(1), Article 26 (2), and Article 27 (1) and (2).

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 23 – paragraph 5 – subparagraph 1

Within the limits of any contractually agreed data volumes or speeds for internet access services, providers of internet access services shall not restrict the freedoms provided for in paragraph 1 by blocking, slowing down, degrading or discriminating against specific content, applications or services, or specific classes thereof, except in cases where it is necessary to apply reasonable traffic management measures. Reasonable traffic management measures shall be transparent, non-discriminatory, proportionate and necessary to: (a) implement a legislative provision or a court order, or prevent or impede serious crimes; (b) preserve the integrity and security of the network, services provided via this network, and the end-users' terminals; (c) prevent the transmission of unsolicited communications to end-users who have given their prior consent to such restrictive measures; (d) minimise the effects of temporary or exceptional network congestion provided that equivalent types of traffic are treated equally.deleted

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 23 – paragraph 5 – subparagraph 2

~~Reasonable traffic management shall only entail processing of data that is necessary and proportionate to achieve the purposes set out in this paragraph.~~deleted

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 24 – paragraph 1

1. National regulatory authorities and national data protection authorities shall closely monitor and ensure the effective ability of end-users to benefit from the freedoms provided for in Article 23 (1) ~~and (2), compliance with Article 23 (5),~~ and the continued availability of non- discriminatory internet access services at levels of quality that reflect advances in technology ~~and that are not impaired by specialised services. They shall, in cooperation with other competent national~~. National regulatory authorities, a~~lso monitor the effects of specialised services on cultural diversity and innovation. National regulatory~~nd national data protection authorities shall report on an annual basis to the Commission and BEREC on their monitoring and findings.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 24 – paragraph 2 a (new)

2a. Where a service provider has failed to fulfil their service requirements, as provided inter alia in Article 25, the end- user shall have the right to rescind the contract, and may also avail of rights as established in national law.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 25 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1 – point e – point iii

(iii) a clear and comprehensible explanation as to how any data volume limitation, the actually available speed and other quality parameters, ~~and the simultaneous use of specialised services with an enhanced quality of service,~~ may practically impact the use of content, applications and services;

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 25 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1 – point g

(g) their standard contract terms and conditions, including ~~any~~ minimum contractual period, the conditions for and any charges due on early termination of a contract, the procedures and direct charges related to switching and portability of numbers and other identifiers, and compensation arrangements for delay or abuse of switching;

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 25 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 2

The information shall be published in a clear, comprehensive and easily accessible form in the official language(s) of the Member State where the service is offered, and be updated regularly. The information shall, on request, be supplied to the relevant national regulatory authorities in advance of its publication. ~~Any differentiation in the conditions applied to consumers and other end-users shall be made explicit.~~

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 25 – paragraph 2

2. ~~The Commission may adopt implementing acts specifying the~~BEREC shall, following consultation with all relevant stakeholders, adopt methods for measuring the speed of internet access services, the quality of service parameters and the methods for measuring them, and the content, form and manner of the information to be published, including possible quality certification mechanisms. ~~The Commission~~BEREC may take into account the parameters, definitions and measurement methods set out in Annex III of the Directive 2002/22/EC ~~.Those implementing acts shall be adopted in~~ . The Commission shall be empowered, via implementing acts, to adopt BEREC's proposals regarding the aforementioned measuring methods, in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 33(2).

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 25 – paragraph 3

3. End-users shall have access to independent evaluation tools allowing them to compare the performance of electronic communications network access and services and the cost of alternative usage patterns. To this end, the Member States, following consultation with all relevant stakeholders, shall establish a voluntary certification scheme for interactive websites, guides or similar tools. Certification shall be granted on the basis of objective, transparent and proportionate requirements, in particular independence from any provider of electronic communications to the public, the use of plain language, the provision of complete and up-to-date information, ~~and the~~ operation of an effective complaints handling procedure. Where certified comparison facilities are not available on the market free of charge or at a reasonable price, national regulatory authorities or other competent national authorities shall make such facilities available themselves or through third parties in compliance with the certification requirements. The information published by providers of electronic communications to the public shall be accessible, free of charge, for the purposes of making available comparison facilities. Where possible, existing comparison websites shall be used as basis for the abovementioned independent evaluation tools.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 25 – paragraph 4 – introductory part

4. ~~Upon request of the relevant public authorities, p~~Providers of electronic communications to the public shall distribute public interest information free of charge to end-users, where appropriate, by the same means as those ordinarily used by them in their communications with end- users. In such a case, that information shall be provided by the ~~relevant public authorities to the~~ providers of electronic communications to the public in a standardised format and may, inter alia, cover the following topics:

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 25 – paragraph 4 – point b

(b) the means of protection against risks to personal security and unlawful access to personal data when using electronic communications services, including the measures taken by the provider of electronic communications and any impact thereof on personal data protection.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 26 – paragraph 1 – point b – point iv a (new)

(iva) any necessary technical information, free of charge, for the end-user to use the terminal equipment of his choice

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 26 – paragraph 1 – point c

(c) details of prices and tariffs ~~(for consumers~~, including taxes and ~~possibly due~~ additional charges) that may be levied and the means by which up-to-date information on all applicable tariffs and charges are made available;

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 26 – paragraph 1 – point e – point iii

(iii) any charges due on early termination of the contract, including any cost recovery with respect to terminal equipment, (on the basis of customary depreciation methods) and other promotional advantages, (on a pro rata temporis basis);

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 26 – paragraph 1 – point f

(f) any compensation and refund arrangements, including an explicit reference to statutory rights of the end- user, which apply, including the right to rescind the contract, if contracted service quality levels are not met;

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 26 – paragraph 1 – point g

(g) where an obligation exists in accordance with Article 25 of Directive 2002/22/EC, the end-users' options as to whether or not to include their personal data in a directory, and the data concerned; in accordance with Article 12 of Directive 2002/58/EC, end-users should also be informed of the purposes of such a directory and use of this data for search functions, and end-users should be given information regarding the modalities of exercising their rights to verify, correct or withdraw their personal data from the directory in question.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 26 – paragraph 1 – point j

(j) the type of action that might be taken by the provider in reaction to security or integrity incidents or threats and vulnerabilities. This information shall include information on the communications inspection techniques underlying such actions, as well as their effect on end user privacy and data protection rights:

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 26 – paragraph 1 – point j – point i (new)

(i) the purposes for which end-user personal data will be processed, and justification thereof;

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 26 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1 a (new)

In addition to the information referred to in subparagraph 1, if the contract includes the provision of internet access and data services, that contract shall include the following information: (a) details of unit data pricing plans, pricing plans for bulk data and any applicable thresholds. For data volumes above thresholds, unit or bulk pricing on an ad hoc basis, and any data speed limitations that may be applied; (b) how end-users can monitor the current level of their consumption, and define the level of their preferred consumption limit (c) the actual available data speed for download and upload at the main location of the end-user, as well as the minimum guaranteed speeds; (d) other quality of service of service parameters as defined in this Regulation, in addition Member States may impose additional parameters; (e) a clear and easily understood explanation of how any volume limitation, the actual available speeds and other quality of service parameters may have a practical impact on the use of content applications and services.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 26 – paragraph 2 – point e

(e) a clear and comprehensible explanation as to how any volume limitation, the actually available speed and other quality of service parameters~~, and the simultaneous use of specialised services with an enhanced quality of service,~~ may practically impact the use of content, applications and services.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 26 – paragraph 5 a (new)

5a. Member States may maintain or introduce additional requirements in relation to contracts to which this Article applies.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 27 – paragraph 1

1. Providers of electronic communications to the public shall offer end-users the opportunity to opt, free of charge, for a facility which provides information on the accumulated consumption of different electronic communications services expressed in the currency in which the end- user is billed. Such information regarding consumption shall be provided in a timely manner. Such a facility shall guarantee that, without the end-user's consent, the accumulated expenditure over a specified period of use does not exceed a specified financial limit set by the end- user.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 27 – paragraph 4

4. Providers of electronic communications to the public shall offer end-users the opportunity to opt, free of charge for receiving itemised bills., in electronic or paper format

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 28 – paragraph 1 a (new)

1a. In accordance with Directive 2011/83/EC, the consumer has the right to withdraw from a distance or off premises contract within 14 days after the conclusion of such a contract.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 28 – paragraph 5

5. Any significant and non-temporary discrepancy between the actual performance regarding speed or other quality parameters and the performance indicated by the provider of electronic communications to the public in accordance with Article 26 shall be considered as non-conformity of performance for the purpose of determining the end-user's remedies in accordance with national law. End-users shall also have the right to rescind the contract in this case of non-conformity of performance.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 28 – paragraph 6

6. A subscription to additional services provided by the same provider of electronic communications to the public shall not re-start the initial contract period unless the price of the additional service(s) significantly exceeds that of the initial services or the additional services are offered at a special promotional price linked to the renewal of the existing contract. The consumer shall be duly informed and shall explicitly accept the renewal.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 28 – paragraph 7 a (new)

7a. Member States may maintain or introduce additional requirements in relation to contracts to which this Article applies.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 30 – paragraph 5

5. The end-users' contracts with transferring providers of electronic communications to the public shall be terminated automatically after conclusion of the switch. Transferring providers of electronic communications to the public shall refund any remaining credit to the consumers using pre-paid services. End- users may also request to have their remaining pre-paid credit transferred to the receiving provider.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 30 – paragraph 5 a (new)

5a. Providers shall provide technical information or protocols allowing the end-user to reprogramme the hardware to be compatible from one provider to another. This information shall be free of charge.

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 36 – paragraph – point 2 a (new)

Directive 2002/22/EC
Article 26 – paragraph 1

(2a) Article 26(1) is replaced by the following: "1. Member States shall ensure that, in addition to any other national emergency call numbers specified by the national regulatory authorities, all end-users of publicly available telephone services, including users of public pay telephones and users of private telecommunications networks, are able to call the emergency services free of charge, by using the single European emergency call number .112.." Or. en (http://eur- lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2002:108:0051:0051:EN:PDF)

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 36 – paragraph 1 – point 2 b (new)

Directive 2002/22/EC
Article 26 – paragraph 2

"2. Member States shall ensure that calls to the single European emergency call number 112 are appropriately answered and handled in a manner best suited to the national organisation of emergency systems and within the technological possibilities of the(2b) Article 26 (2) is replaced by the following: “2. Member States, in consultation with national regulatory authorities, emergency services and providers, shall ensure that undertakings providing end- users with an electronic communications service for originating national calls to a number or numbers in a national telephone numbering plan provide access to emergency services. End-users shall also be able to access "112" directly when calling from a private telecommunications networks." Or. en (http://eur- lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2002:108:0051:0051:EN:PDF)

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 36 – paragraph 1 – point 2 c (new)

Directive 2002/22/EC
Article 26 – paragraph 3 a (new)

(2c) In Article 26, the following paragraph is added: "3a. The Commission shall maintain a database of European emergency service E.164 numbers to ensure that emergency services can contact each other."

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 36 – paragraph 1 – point 2 d (new)

2002/22/EC
Article 26 – paragraph 5

(2d) Article 26(5) is replaced by the following: "5. Member States shall ensure that undertakings concerned make caller location information available free of charge to the authority handling emergency calls as soon as the call reaches that authority. This shall apply to all calls to the single European emergency call number '112', including calls from private telecommunications networks and roaming calls. Member States may extend this obligation to cover calls to national emergency numbers. Competent regulatory authorities shall lay down criteria for the accuracy and reliability of the caller location information provided." Or. en (http://eur- lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2002:108:0051:0077:EN:PDF)

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 37 – point 4

Regulation 531/2012
Article 4 a (new)

(4) The following Article 4a is inserted: Article 4a 1. This Article shall apply to roaming providers which: (a) apply, by default and in all their respective retail packages that include regulated roaming services, the applicable domestic service rate to both domestic services and regulated roaming services throughout the Union, as if the regulated roaming services were consumed on the home network; and (b) ensure, whether through their own networks or by virtue of bilateral or multilateral roaming agreements with other roaming providers, that the provisions of point (a) are complied with by at least one roaming provider in all Member States. 2. Paragraphs 1, 6 and 7 shall not preclude the limitation by a roaming provider of consumption of regulated retail roaming services at the applicable domestic service rate by reference to a reasonable use criterion. Any reasonable use criterion shall be applied in such a way that consumers availing of the roaming provider's various domestic retail packages are in a position to confidently replicate the typical domestic consumption pattern associated with their respective domestic retail packages while periodically travelling within the Union. A roaming provider availing of this possibility shall publish, in accordance with Article 25(1)(b) of Regulation XXX/2014, and include in its contracts, in accordance with Article 26(1)(b) and (c) of that Regulation, detailed quantified information on how the reasonable use criterion is applied, by reference to the main pricing, volume or other parameters of the retail package in question. By 31 December 2014, BEREC shall, after consulting stakeholders and in close cooperation with the Commission, lay down general guidelines for the application of reasonable use criteria in the retail contracts provided by roaming providers availing of this Article. BEREC shall develop such guidelines by reference to the overall objective set out in the first subparagraph, and shall have regard in particular to the evolution of pricing and consumption patterns in the Member States, to the degree of convergence of domestic price levels across the Union, to any observable effect of roaming at domestic service rates on the evolution of such rates, and to the evolution of wholesale roaming rates for unbalanced traffic between roaming providers. The competent national regulatory authority shall monitor and supervise the application of reasonable use criteria, taking utmost account of the BEREC general guidelines once they are adopted, and shall ensure that unreasonable terms are not applied. 3. Individual end-users served by a roaming provider availing of this Article may, upon their own request, make a deliberate and explicit choice to renounce the benefit of the application to regulated roaming services of the applicable domestic service rate under a given retail package in return for other advantages offered by that provider. The roaming provider shall remind those end users of the nature of the roaming advantages which would thereby be lost. National regulatory authorities shall monitor in particular whether roaming providers availing of this Article engage in business practices which would amount to circumvention of the default regime. 4. Regulated retail roaming charges laid down in Articles 8, 10 and 13 shall not apply to roaming services offered by a roaming provider availing of this Article to the extent that these are charged at the level of the applicable domestic service rate. Where a roaming provider availing of this Article applies charges which are different from the applicable domestic service rate for consumption of regulated roaming services going beyond reasonable use of such services in accordance with paragraph 2, or where an individual end user explicitly renounces the benefit of domestic service rates for regulated roaming services in accordance with paragraph 3, the charges for those regulated roaming services shall not exceed the retail roaming charges laid down in Articles 8, 10 and 13. 5. A roaming provider wishing to avail of this Article shall notify its own declaration and any bilateral or multilateral agreements by virtue of which it fulfils the conditions of paragraph 1, and any changes thereto, to the BEREC Office. The notifying roaming provider shall include in its notification proof of agreement to such notification by any contractual partners to notified bilateral or multilateral roaming agreements. 6. In the period from 1 July 2014 until 30 June 2016, this Article shall apply to roaming providers which do not fulfil the conditions set out in paragraph 1, when they respect the following conditions: (a) the roaming provider notifies its own declaration and any relevant bilateral or multilateral roaming agreements to the BEREC Office in accordance with paragraph 5, making specific reference to this paragraph; (b) the roaming provider ensures, whether through its own networks or by virtue of bilateral or multilateral roaming agreements with other roaming providers, that the conditions of points (c),(d) and (e) are complied with in at least 17 Member States representing 70% of the population of the Union; (c) the roaming provider and any contractual partners within the meaning of point (b) each undertakes to make available and actively offer, at the latest as from 1 July 2014, or as from the date of notification, whichever is the later, at least one retail package with a tariff option according to which the applicable domestic service rate applies to both domestic services and regulated roaming services throughout the Union, as if those regulated roaming services were consumed on the home network; (d) the roaming provider and any contractual partners within the meaning of point (b) each undertakes to make available and actively offer, at the latest as from 1 July 2015, or as from the date of notification, whichever is the later, such tariff options in retail packages which, on 1 January of that year, were used by at least 50% of their respective customer base; (e) the roaming provider and any contractual partners within the meaning of point (b) each undertakes to comply, at the latest as from 1 July 2016, with paragraph 1(b) in all of their respective retail packages. The roaming provider availing of this Article and any contractual partners within the meaning of point (b) may, as an alternative to the undertaking referred to in point (d), undertake, as from 1 July 2015, or as from the date of notification, whichever is the later, that any roaming surcharges applied in addition to the applicable domestic service rate in its various retail packages are, in aggregate, no more than 50% of those applicable in those packages on 1 January 2015, irrespective of whether such surcharges are calculated on the basis of units such as voice minutes or megabytes, of periods such as days or weeks of roaming, or by any other means or combination thereof. Roaming providers invoking this point shall demonstrate compliance with the requirement of a 50% reduction to the national regulatory authority and shall supply all necessary supporting evidence requested of them. Where the roaming provider availing of this Article notifies its own declaration and any relevant bilateral or multilateral roaming agreements to the BEREC Office pursuant to point (a) of the first subparagraph and thereby falls under this paragraph, the notifying roaming provider and any contractual partners within the meaning of point (b) shall each be bound to comply with their respective undertakings in accordance with points (c), (d) and (e) of the first subparagraph, including any alternative undertaking to that provided for in point (d) of that subparagraph, until at least 1 July 2018. 7. In the period from 1 July 2014 until 30 June 2016, this Article shall apply to roaming providers which do not fulfil the conditions set out in paragraph 1, when they respect the following conditions: (a) the roaming provider notifies its own declaration and any relevant bilateral or multilateral roaming agreements to the BEREC Office in accordance with paragraph 5, making specific reference to this paragraph; (b) the roaming provider ensures, whether through its own networks or by virtue of bilateral or multilateral roaming agreements with other roaming providers, that the conditions of paragraph 1(a) are complied with in at least 10 Member States representing 30% of the population of the Union, at the latest as from 1 July 2014, or as from the date of notification, whichever is the later; (c) the roaming provider ensures, whether through its own networks or by virtue of bilateral or multilateral roaming agreements with other roaming providers, that the conditions of paragraph 1(a) are complied with in at least 14 Member States representing 50% of the population of the Union, at the latest as from 1 July 2015, or as from the date of notification, whichever is the later; (d) the roaming provider ensures, whether through its own networks or by virtue of bilateral or multilateral roaming agreements with other roaming providers, that the conditions of paragraph 1(a) are complied with in at least 17 Member States representing 70% of the population of the Union, at the latest as from 1 July 2016. Where a roaming provider availing of this Article notifies its own declaration and any relevant bilateral or multilateral roaming agreements to the BEREC Office pursuant to point (a) of the first subparagraph and thereby falls under this paragraph, the notifying roaming provider and any contractual partners within the meaning of point (b) shall each be bound to comply with their respective undertakings to comply with the conditions of paragraph 1(a), until at least 1 July 2018. 8. Roaming providers shall negotiate in good faith the arrangements towards establishing bilateral or multilateral roaming agreements, on fair and reasonable terms having regard to the objective that such agreements with other roaming providers should allow the virtual extension of the home network coverage and the sustainable provision by each of the roaming providers availing of this Article of regulated retail roaming services at the same price level as their respective domestic mobile communications services. 9. By way of exception to paragraph 1, after 1 July 2016, this Article shall apply to roaming providers availing of this Article when those roaming providers demonstrate that they have sought in good faith to establish or extend a bilateral or multilateral roaming agreements on the basis of fair and reasonable terms in all Member States where they do not yet fulfil the requirements of 1 and have been unable to secure any bilateral or multilateral roaming agreement with a roaming provider in one or more Member States, provided they comply with the minimum coverage referred to in paragraph 6(b) and with all other relevant provisions of this Article. In those cases, roaming providers availing of this Article shall continue to seek to establish reasonable terms for conclusion of a roaming agreement with a roaming provider from any unrepresented Member State. 10. Where an alternative roaming provider has already been granted access to a domestic provider's customers pursuant to Article 4(1) and has already made the necessary investments to serve those customers, Article 4(7) shall not apply to such a domestic provider during a transitional period of three years. The transitional period is without prejudice to the need to respect any longer contractual period agreed with the alternative roaming provider. 11. This Article is without prejudice to the application of Union competition rules to bilateral and multilateral roaming agreements.deleted

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 37 – point 4

Regulation 531/2012
Article 4 a – paragraph 3

3. Individual end-users served by a roaming provider availing of this Article may, upon their own request, make a deliberate and explicit choice to renounce the benefit of the application to regulated roaming services of the applicable domestic service rate under a given retail package in return for other advantages offered by that provider. The roaming provider shall remind those end users of the nature of the roaming advantages which would thereby be lost. National regulatory authorities shall monitor in particular whether roaming providers availing of this Article engage in business practices which would amount to circumvention of the default regime.deleted

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 37 – point 4 a (new)

Regulation 531/2012
Article 7

(4a) Article 7 is replaced by the following: "1. The average wholesale charge that the visited network operator may levy on the customer's roaming provider for the provision of a regulated roaming call originating on that visited network, inclusive, inter alia, of origination, transit and termination costs, shall not exceed EUR 0,140 per minute as of 1 July 2012. 2. The average wholesale charge referred to in paragraph 1 shall apply between any pair of operators and shall be calculated over a 12-month period or any such shorter period as may remain before the end of the period of application of a maximum average wholesale charge as provided for in this paragraph or before 30 June 2022. The maximum average wholesale charge shall decrease to EUR 0,~~10 on 1 July 2013 and to EUR 0,05~~04 on 1 July 2014 and shall, without prejudice to Article 19, remain at EUR 0,054 until 30 June 2022. 3. The average wholesale charge referred to in paragraph 1 shall be calculated by dividing the total wholesale roaming revenue received by the total number of wholesale roaming minutes actually used for the provision of wholesale roaming calls within the Union by the relevant operator over the relevant period, aggregated on a per-second basis ~~adjusted to take account of the possibility for~~. the operator of the visited network shall noto apply any initial minimum charging period ~~not exceeding 30 seconds." lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2012:172:0010:0035:EN:PDF)~~." Or. en (http://eur-

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 37 – point 5 – point a

Regulation (EU) No 531/2012
Article 8 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1

"2. With effect from 1 July 20132, the retail charge (excluding VAT) for a euro-voice tariff which a roaming provider may levy on its roaming customer for the provision of a regulated roaming call may vary for any roaming call but shall not exceed EUR 0,2415 per minute for any call made or EUR 0,075 per minute for any call received. The maximum retail charge for calls made shall decrease to EUR 0,19 on 1 July 2014~~. As of 1 July 2014, roaming providers shall not levy any charge on their roaming customers for calls received, without prejudice to measures taken to prevent anomalous or fraudulent usage~~ and the maximum retail charge for calls received shall decrease to EUR 0,03 on 1 July 2014. Without prejudice to Article 19 those maximum retail charges for the euro-voice tariff shall remain valid until 30 June 2017. " Or. en (http://eur- lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2012:172:0010:0035:EN:PDF)

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 37 – point 5 – point b

Regulation (EU) No 531/2012
Article 8 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 3

(b) the third subparagraph is replaced by the following: Every roaming provider shall charge its roaming customers for the provision of any regulated roaming call to which a euro-voice tariff applies on a per-second basis. lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2012:172:0010:0035:EN:PDF)deleted Or. en (http://eur-

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 37 – point 5 – point ba (new)

(ba) the fourth subparagraph is replaced by the following: "The roaming provider may not apply an initial minimum charging period ~~not exceeding 30 seconds~~ to calls made which are subject to a euro-voice tariff. " Or. en (http://eur- lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2012:172:0010:0035:EN:PDF)

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 37 – point 5 a (new)

Regulation (EU) No 531/2012
Article 9 – paragraph 1

1. With effect from 1 July 2012, the average wholesale charge that the visited network operator may levy for the provision of a regulated roaming SMS message originating on that visited network shall not exceed EUR 0,03 per SMS message. The maximum average wholesale charge shall decrease to EUR 0,02 on 1 July 2013 and shall, without prejudice to Article 19, remain at EUR 0,02 until 30 June 2022." (5a) Article 9(1) is deleted; Or. en (http://eur- lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2012:172:0010:0035:EN:PDF)

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 37 – point 5 b (new)

Regulation (EU) No 531/2012
Article 10 – paragraph 2

(5b) Article 10(2) is replaced by the following: "2. With effect from 1 July 2012, the retail charge (excluding VAT) for a euro-SMS tariff which a roaming provider may levy on its roaming customer for a regulated roaming SMS message sent by that roaming customer may vary for any regulated roaming SMS message but shall not exceed EUR 0,097. That maximum charge shall decrease to EUR 0,0~~8 on 1 July 2013 and to EUR 0,06~~5 on 1 July 2014 and shall, without prejudice to Article 19, remain at EUR 0,065 until 30 June 2017. ~~lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2012:172:0010:0035:EN:PDF)~~" Or. en (http://eur-

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 37 – point 5 c (new)

Regulation (EU) No 531/2012
Article 12 – paragraph 1

(5c) Article 12 (1) is replaced by the following: "1. With effect from 1 July 2012, the average wholesale charge that the visited network operator may levy on the roaming customer's home provider for the provision of regulated data roaming services by means of that visited network shall not exceed a safeguard limit of ~~EUR 0,25 per megabyte of data transmitted. The safeguard limit shall decrease to EUR 0,15 per megabyte of data transmitted on 1 July 2013 and to EUR 0,05 per me~~10 EUR per gigabyte of data transmitted ~~on 1 July 2014~~ and shall, without prejudice to Article 19, remain at 10 EUR ~~0,05~~ per megigabyte of data transmitted until 30 June 2022. ~~lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2012:172:0010:0035:EN:PDF)~~" Or. en (http://eur-

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 37 – point 5 d (new)

(5d) In Article 13(2), the first subparagraph is replaced by the following: "2. With effect from 1 July 2012, the retail charge (excluding VAT) of a euro-data tariff which a roaming provider may levy on its roaming customer for the provision of a regulated data roaming service shall not exceed EUR 0,70 per megabyte used. The maximum retail charge for data used shall decrease to 20 EUR ~~0,45 per megabyte used on 1 July 2013 and to EUR 0,20~~ per megigabyte used on 1 July 2014 and shall, without prejudice to Article 19, remain at 20 EUR ~~0,20~~ per megigabyte used until 30 June 2017." Or. en (http://eur- lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2012:172:0010:0035:EN:PDF)

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO

Christian ENGSTRÖM

Proposal for a regulation
Article 40 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 2

~~However, Articles 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29 and 30 shall apply from 1 July 2016.~~deleted

2013/12/06
Committee: IMCO