The European Parliament approved with amendments, under the second reading of the codecision procedure, the Council’s common position with a view to the adoption of a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 2002/22/EC on universal service and users’ rights relating to electronic communications networks, Directive 2002/58/EC concerning the processing of personal data and the protection of privacy in the electronic communications sector and Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004 on cooperation between national authorities responsible for the enforcement of consumer protection laws.The amendments adopted in plenary are the result of a compromise negotiated with the Council.Note that this proposal is part of the “telecom package” which includes the revision of the electronic communications regulatory framework and the establishment of a new European body of telecom regulators (BEREC). Given that MEPs could not reach a compromise with the Council on the framework directive and that all three proposals are interlinked, it is likely that the whole package will go to conciliation in the next legislature. With regard to the common position on the revision of the electronic communications framework and specific directives, the main amendments are as follows:Subject-matter and scope: the compromise clarifies that the directive neither mandates nor prohibits conditions, imposed by providers of publicly available electronic communications and services, limiting users’ access to and/or use of services and applications, where allowed under national law and in conformity with Community law, but does provide for information regarding such conditions. National measures regarding end-users’ access to or use of services and applications through electronic communications networks shall respect the fundamental rights and freedoms of natural persons, including in relation to privacy and due process, as defined in the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.Public pay telephones and other public voice telephony access points: in order to ensure technological neutrality and continued access by the public to voice telephony, national regulatory authorities should be able to impose obligations on undertakings in order to ensure that public pay telephones or other public voice telephony access points are provided to meet the reasonable needs of end-users in terms of the geographical coverage, the number of telephones or other access points, accessibility to disabled users and the quality of services.Disabled end-users: the Parliament and Council agree that equivalence in disabled end-users’ access to services should be guaranteed to the level available to other end-users. To this end, access should be functionally equivalent such that disabled end-users benefit from the same usability of services as other end-users, but by different means.Contracts: the Parliament considers it necessary to increase the level of detail of information to be provided in contracts. Therefore, the contract shall specify in a clear, comprehensive and easily accessible form a number of elements, including:whether or not access to emergency services and caller location information is being provided, and/or any limitations on the provision of emergency services;information on any other conditions limiting access to and/or use of services and applications;information on any procedures put in place by the undertaking to measure and shape traffic so as to avoid filling or overfilling a network link and on how those procedures could impact on service quality;the duration of the contract and the conditions for renewal and termination of services and of the contract, including any minimum usage or duration required to benefit from promotional terms.Quality of service: in order to prevent the degradation of service and the hindering or slowing down of traffic over networks, Member States shall ensure that national regulatory authorities are able to set minimum quality of service requirements on an undertaking or undertakings providing public communications networks. The compromise adds that national regulatory authorities shall provide the Commission, in good time before setting any such requirements, with a summary of the grounds for action, the envisaged requirements and the proposed course of action. The Commission may, having examined such information, make comments or recommendations thereupon, in particular to ensure that the requirements do not adversely affect the functioning of the internal market. National regulatory authorities shall take the utmost account of the Commission's comments or recommendations when deciding on the requirements.Emergency services and the single European emergency call number: the text provides that 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.In order to ensure the effective access to “112” services in the Member States, the Commission, having consulted BEREC, may adopt technical implementing measures. However, these technical implementing measures shall be adopted without prejudice to, and shall have no impact on, the organisation of emergency services, which remains of the exclusive competence of Member States.European telephone access codes: a legal entity, established within the Community and designated by the Commission, shall have sole responsibility for the management, including number assignment, and promotion of the European Telephony Numbering Space (ETNS). The Commission shall adopt the necessary implementing rules.Harmonised numbers for harmonised services of social value: Member States shall ensure that disabled end-users are able to access services provided under the “116” numbering range to the greatest extent possible. They shall also make every effort to ensure that citizens have access to a service operating a hotline to report cases of missing children. The hotline shall be available on the number 116000.In order to ensure the effective implementation of the “116” numbering range, in particular the missing children hotline number 116000, in the Member States, including access for disabled end-users when travelling in other Member States, the Commission, having consulted BEREC, may adopt technical implementing measures, in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny. However, these technical implementing measures shall be adopted without prejudice to, and shall have no impact on, the organisation of these services, which remains of the exclusive competence of Member States.International code “3883”: a new recital stresses that development of the international code “3883” (the European Telephony Numbering Space (ETNS)) is currently hindered by insufficient awareness and overly bureaucratic procedural requirements. In order to foster the development of ETNS, the countries to which the International Telecommunications Union has assigned the international code “3883” should delegate responsibility for its management, number assignment and promotion to an existing separate organisation, designated by the Commission on the basis of an open, transparent and non-discriminatory selection procedure. That organisation should also be tasked with developing proposals for public service applications using ETNS for common European services, such as a common number for reporting thefts of mobile terminals.Facilitating change of provider: porting of numbers and their subsequent activation shall be carried out within the shortest possible time. In any case, the compromise provides that subscribers who have concluded an agreement to port a number to a new undertaking shall have that number activated within one working day. Loss of service during the process of porting shall not exceed one working day.Competent national authorities shall also take into account, where necessary, measures ensuring that subscribers are protected throughout the switching process and are not switched against their will. Appropriate sanctions on undertakings shall be provided for, including an obligation to compensate subscribers in case of delay in porting or abuse of porting by them or on their behalf.Lastly, Member States shall ensure that: (i) contracts concluded between consumers and undertakings providing electronic communications services do not mandate an initial commitment period that exceeds 24 months; (ii) undertakings offer users the possibility to subscribe to a contract with a maximum duration of 12 months.Out-of-court settlement of disputes: Member States shall ensure that transparent, non-discriminatory, 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. Such procedures shall enable disputes to be settled impartially and shall not deprive the consumer of the legal protection afforded by national law.Security of processing and protection of personal data: the text stipulates that the provisions of this directive particularise and complement Directive 95/46/EC on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data. Moreover, they provide for protection of the legitimate interests of subscribers who are legal persons.Without prejudice to Directive 95/46/EC on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, the measures taken in this area shall at least:ensure that personal data can be accessed only by authorised personnel for legally authorised purposes;protect personal data stored or transmitted against accidental or unlawful destruction, accidental loss or alteration, and unauthorised or unlawful storage, processing, access or disclosure;ensure the implementation of a security policy with respect to the processing of personal data.When the personal data breach is likely to adversely affect the personal data and privacy of a subscriber or an individual, the provider shall also notify the subscriber or individual of the breach without undue delay. If the provider has not already notified the subscriber or individual of the personal data breach, the competent national authority, having considered the likely adverse effects of the breach, may require it to do so.Notification of a personal data breach to a subscriber or individual concerned shall not be required if the provider has demonstrated to the satisfaction of the competent authority that it has implemented appropriate technological protection measures, and those measures were applied to the data concerned by the security breach. Providers shall maintain an inventory of personal data breaches, comprising the facts surrounding such breaches, their effects and the remedial action taken. Safeguards provided for subscribers against intrusion of their privacy by unsolicited communications for direct marketing purposes by means of electronic mail are also applicable to SMS, MMS and other kinds of similar applications.

The Common Position incorporates all, part or the thrust of a large number of amendments adopted at first reading by the European Parliament (87 of a total of 155).The Council, like the European Parliament, has opted for an approach emphasising the importance of facilitating access for disabled end-users. It also agrees with the European Parliament regarding a specific article on harmonised numbers for harmonised services of social value, even if the level of detail decided on by the Council is not totally in line with the Parliament's view.One overall difference compared with the Commission proposal concerns the question of committee procedure and references to the authority. Another overall difference, this time compared with the European Parliament's position, concerns references to the content. In both cases, the number of such references has been reduced to a minimum. Moreover, the Council has added or modified a number of provisions in order to clarify the text's objectives and their implementation.The Council's Common Position is largely in line with that of the European Parliament. The most important points on which the Council has opted for an approach differing from that of the European Parliament or the Commission are indicated hereafter:Contracts: the Council endorsed the general approach of the Commission proposals but, in agreement here with the European Parliament, thought it necessary to increase the level of detail in the information to be provided in contracts, particularly as regards service-quality indicators, customer services and conditions governing the minimum duration of contracts in the case of promotions.Quality of service: the chief question examined by the Council was that of the level and nature of Commission intervention. The approach adopted is to leave it up to the NRAs to determine the minimum quality requirements for service involving undertakings which provide public communication networks.Notification of breaches of security: the Council opted for an approach enabling the provider of an electronic communication service accessible to the public to assess the seriousness of the breach and the need to notify the NRA and/or the subscriber concerned, contrary to the European Parliament which would not like to leave such assessment entirely up to the discretion of the provider and would prefer to make notification to the NRA compulsory in all cases together with publication of the breaches committed. To ensure an appropriate level of harmonisation, the Council is making it compulsory for Member States to see that the NRAs are able to issue detailed rules concerning the circumstances, format and procedures applicable to the information and notification requirements relating to breaches of personal data.

The amended proposal adapts the original proposal on a number of points as suggested by the European Parliament.It is recalled that this legislative proposal covers changes to the Universal Service Directive and the Directive on privacy and electronic communications. The aim is to adapt the regulatory framework for electronic communications by strengthening certain consumer and user rights and by ensuring that electronic communications are trustworthy, secure and reliable and provide a high level of protection for individuals’ privacy and personal data.More specifically, the objectives of the present proposals are two-fold:strengthening and improving consumer protection and user rights in the electronic communications sector, by — among other aspects — giving consumers more information about prices and supply conditions, and facilitating access to and use of e-communications, including emergency services, for disabled end-users;enhancing the protection of individuals’ privacy and personal data in the electronic communications sector, in particular through strengthened security-related provisions and improved enforcement mechanisms.The European Parliament adopted 155 amendments at 1st reading on 24 September 2008. In its amended proposal, the Commission accepts 58 amendments in their entirety. It accepts 50 in part or subject to rewording.It should be noted that it was not able to accept 56 amendments.

The European Parliament adopted by 548 votes to 88, with 14 abstentions, a legislative resolution approving, with amendments, the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 2002/22/EC on universal service and users’ rights relating to electronic communications networks, Directive 2002/58/EC concerning the processing of personal data and the protection of privacy in the electronic communications sector and Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004 on consumer protection cooperation.The report had been tabled for consideration in plenary by Malcolm HARBOUR (EPP-ED, UK) on behalf of the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection.The main amendments – adopted at 1st reading of the co-decision procedure – are as follows:Pre-contractual information: operators should provide users with transparent, comparable, appropriate and up to date information on prices and tariffs, charges for terminating a contract and general terms and conditions. MEPs clarified the pre-contractual information requirements and broadened the information and transparency provisions. Therefore, the contract shall specify in a clear, comprehensive and easily accessible form at least:where access to emergency services and caller location information is to be provided, the level of reliability of such access, where relevant, and whether access is provided in the whole of the national territory;information on any restrictions imposed by the provider regarding a subscriber's ability to access, use or distribute lawful content or run lawful applications and services;the service quality levels;types of maintenance and customer support services offered, as well as how to contact customer support;the time for the initial connection and any restrictions on the use of terminal equipment imposed by the provider;the subscriber's decision as to whether to include his or her personal data in a directory and the data concerned;any charges related to portability of numbers and other identifiers and any charges due on termination of the contract;any compensation arrangements which apply if security or integrity incidents occur.Protection of personal data: the Parliament proposes including the right to privacy and the right to confidentiality and security of information technology systems. Therefore, customers should be informed of their rights with respect to the use of their personal information in directories of subscribers, and in particular of the purposes of such directories, as well as their right, free of charge, not to be included in a public subscriber directory.Breach of security: the NRAs should be able to compel providers to include in the contract public interest warnings, in a standardised form, regarding copyright infringement, other unlawful uses and dissemination of harmful content, and advice and means of protection against risks to personal security, which may for example arise from disclosure of personal information in certain circumstances, privacy and personal data. Furthermore, MEPs call for the establishment of a mechanism for the purpose of enabling appropriate cooperation on issues relating to the promotion of lawful content.Security of networks: the customer contract should specify the type of action, if any, the provider might take in case of security or integrity incidents, threats or vulnerabilities, as well as any arrangements implemented by the provider to provide compensation if such events occur. Providers shall annually notify affected users of all breaches of security that have led to the accidental or unlawful destruction, loss or alteration or the unauthorised disclosure of or access to personal data. The perpetrator may be the subject of criminal proceedings determined by the Member States. An amendment specifies the conditions under which a breach shall be considered as a serious breach and shall therefore justify the notification of the subscriber.Disabled users: the notion of a publicly accessible telephone service is more clearly defined and expressly includes services specifically tailored to the needs of disabled users. Particular attention should be given to terminal equipment for users with special needs, including the disabled and the elderly. Disabled end-users should have access to electronic communication services equivalent to that enjoyed by the majority of end-users. They should also receive regular information on the products or services aimed at them.Emergency numbers: MEPs call on the Commission to support the initiatives of the Member States to increase awareness of the emergency number "112" and to periodically evaluate knowledge of"112" by the public. The emergency services should be able to appropriately respond to and handle all calls to the single European emergency call number "112". Furthermore, MEPs call for the establishment of a missing children hotline number, available on the number "116000". Noting that the development of the international code “3883” (the European Telephony Numbering Space (ETNS)) is currently hindered by lack of demand, MEPs call on the Commission to delegate responsibility for its management, number assignment and promotion to a separate organisation, following the example of the implementation of the ".eu" top level domain.Porting of numbers: porting of numbers and their subsequent activation should be executed within the shortest possible delay, no later than one working day from the initial request by the subscriber. Member States ask that national regulatory authorities should be able to extend the one day period, where necessary, to ensure that subscribers are not switched against their will. They also call for the possibility to impose sanctions on providers in the event of a delay in porting or abuse of porting. Furthermore, MEPs call for a standardisation of the maximum duration of contracts for subscriptions: it should not exceed 24 months, with the possibility for users to subscribe to a contract with a maximum duration of 12 months.Quality of service: in certain instances, where there is a lack of effective competition, national regulatory authorities should use the remedies available to them under the Directives establishing the regulatory framework for electronic communications networks and services to ensure that users" access to particular types of content or applications is not unreasonably restricted. A national regulatory authority may issue guidelines setting minimum quality of service requirements, and, if appropriate, take other measures, in order to prevent degradation of service and slowing of traffic over networks, and to ensure that the ability of users to access or distribute content or to run applications and services of their choice is not unreasonably restricted.Universal service: lastly, the Parliament calls on the European Commission to present, no later than autumn 2008, a review of the scope of the universal service obligation and proposals for reform aimed at explicitly including mobile telephony and broadband internet connection in the scope of Directive 2002/22/EC.

The Council held a public exchange of views on the review of the EU regulatory framework and took note of the presidency's three progress reports on the work carried out so far in its preparatory bodies. (See also COD/2007/0247 and COD/2007/0249).The Commission's telecoms reform package aims to enable citizens, wherever they live and wherever they travel in the EU, to benefit from better and cheaper communication services.On the basis of questions drawn up by the presidency, Ministers' debate focused in particular on the proposal on better regulation, namely the consistent application of the regulatory framework in the internal market and the management of the radio spectrum in the EU.The discussions provided political guidance for further work on these proposals that will continue under the forthcoming French presidency.Citizen’s rights directive: during the examination of the proposal in the working party, the delegations supported the Commission initiative in principle, agreeing that in general the amendments proposed by the Commission go in the right direction and concern important issues. The general thrust of the proposal, namely to ensure that consumers' rights remain an important focus of regulatory policy in the sector, was broadly supported, as regards both the universal service directive and the e-privacy directive.However, Member States underlined the need to carefully examine the proposals in order to maintain an appropriate balance of proportionality and subsidiarity, as well as to avoid unnecessary burdens for both national regulatory authorities and the undertakings concerned, while ensuring competition and benefits for end-users.In addition, the progress report identifies the main issues that remain open. In respect of the universal service directive, these issues are: provision of access at a fixed location and provision of telephone services; provisions for contracts; quality of service as well as emergency call provisions. As far as the e-privacy directive is concerned, the security of processing and the issue of implementation and enforcement, in particular, will need further discussion.

PURPOSE: to reform Community rules in the telecommunications sector with a view to ensuring a high level of consumer protection and of users’ rights, in particular the right to personal privacy and data protection in the electronic communications field.PROPOSED ACT: Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council.CONTEXT: in June 2006, the Commission presented a report to the European Parliament and the Council on the functioning of the regulatory framework for electronic communications networks and services. The report noted that the framework had yielded considerable benefits for citizens, consumers, and businesses in terms of better choice, lower prices and more innovation, but there was room for improvement in the field of consumer protection and security to ensure that it kept pace with technological developments and remained effective for the coming decade.In order to ensure the safeguarding of universal service and users’ rights, as well as the protection of personal data, the Community rules need to be adapted with the dual aim of:Strengthening and improving consumer protection and user rights in the electronic communication sector, through — amongst other aspects —giving consumers more information about prices and supply conditions, and facilitating access to and use of e-communications, including emergency services, for disabled users; andEnhancing the protection of individuals’ privacy and personal data in the electronic communications sector, in particular through strengthened security-related provisions and improved enforcement mechanisms.This proposal deals with the changes to be made to the Universal Service (2002/22/EC) and the Directive on privacy and electronic communications (2002/58/EC). It is one of a package of reforms that also includes:a proposal to amend the Framework Directive (2002/21/EC) and the Authorisation (2002/19/EC) and Access (2002/20/EC) Directives (see COD/2007/0247) anda proposal for a Regulation creating a new European Electronic  Communications Market Authority (see COD/2007/0249).CONTENT: The proposed directive adapts the regulatory framework by strengthening certain consumers’ and users’ rights (in particular with a view to improving accessibility and promoting an inclusive Information Society), and ensuring that electronic communications are trustworthy, secure and reliable and provide a high level of protection for individuals’ privacy and personal data. The proposal does not alter the current scope or concept of universal service in the EU, which will be subject to a separate consultation in 2008. The main amendments to the Universal Service Directive are as follows:improving the transparency and publication of information for end-users;facilitating use of and access to e-communications for disabled users;facilitating the switching of suppliers by consumers through, among other things; strengthened provisions on number portability; improving obligations related to emergency services; ensuring basic connectivity and quality of service; andmodernising specific provisions of the Directive to bring them into line with technology and market developments, including the deletion of a number of obsolete or redundant provisions.The main amendments to the Directive on privacy and electronic communications are as follows:introducing mandatory notification of security breaches resulting in users’ personal data being lost or compromised; strengthening implementation provisions related to network and information security to be adopted in consultation with the Authority; strengthening implementation and enforcement provisions to ensure that sufficient measures are available at Member State level to combat spam; clarifying that the Directive also applies to public communications networks supporting data collection and identification devices (including contactless devices such as Radio Frequency Identification Devices); modernising certain provisions that have become outdated, including the deletion of some obsolete or redundant provisions.