telekom control - telecommunications report 1998-1999 / Regulatory environment and telecommunications institutions / The liberalisation programme of the European Union

The publication of the Green Paper of the European Commission in 1987 regarding liberalisation of the telecommunications markets¹ was, after some years of discussion, the first political milestone towards the implementation of freedom to provide services in the telecommunications sector in the European Community. The legal framework for the implementation of the liberalisation programme for the telecommunications sector is provided by the Directives on liberalisation enacted in the wake of Art. 86 EC Treaty (ex Art. 90 EEC Treaty) and the Directives on harmonisation (legal acts on Open Network Provision - ONP) pursuant to Art. 95 EC Treaty (ex Art. 100a EEC Treaty).

The legal framework provided by legislation on
liberalisation and harmonisation moreover forms the background for the
measures taken by the European Commission in the application of the competition
rules. Both the liberalisation and the harmonisation regulations shall
ensure that the objectives of the Community laid down in Art. 3 EC Treaty
will be achieved². On this basis the European Union concentrated on the
following issues:

Liberalisation of monopolised sectors;
Open Network Provision (ONP);
Application of the rules of competition.

Table 1: Liberalisation of monopolised sectors - Directives pursuant to Art. 86 EC Treaty (ex Art. 90 EEC Treaty)

1988	The telecommunications equipment sector was liberalised.	Terminal Equipment Directive (directive 88/301/EEC)
1990	Value-added services, data services as well as voice telephony services for corporate networks and closed user groups were liberalised. In order not to jeopardise universal service, public voice telephony service and public network infrastructure continued to exist as monopolised sectors.	Services Directive (directive 90/388/EEC)
1994	Satellite services were opened to competition. In November 1994 (i.e. after the Telecommunications Act 1993 entered into force), new services (e.g. Calling Cards) as well as the development of new financing models for universal service (94/C 48/01) gave rise to the decision to liberalise not only the provision of voice telephony service but also network infrastructure per 1 January 1998; a number of states were granted transitional periods.	(directive 94/46/EC) (directive 94/C 379/03)
1995	The restrictions on the use of cable television networks for the provision of already liberalised telecommunications services, as laid down in the Services Directive, were abolished.	Cable Directive (directive 95/51/EC)
1996	Further adaptations of the Services Directive were carried out in the field of mobile communications and with regard to the introduction of a time schedule for the implementation of full competition.	Mobile Communications Directives (directive 96/2/EC and 96/19/EC)

The ONP regulations aim at ensuring open, efficient and equal access to public telecommunications networks and services with a view to fair competition by Community-wide harmonisation of the access and usage conditions, technical interfaces and tariff principles.

Art. 86 EC Treaty (ex Art. 90 EEC Treaty) stipulates that the rules of competition of the EC Treaty shall apply to undertakings entrusted with the operation of services of general economic interest, however only "in so far as the

application of such rules does not obstruct the performance, in law or in fact, of the particular tasks assigned to them". To support the liberalisation process in 1991, 1995 and 1998 the European Commission published documents on the application of the competition rules in the telecommunications sector.
Of central importance for the implementation of competition are in particular Art. 81 EC Treaty (ex Art. 85 EEC Treaty; prohibition of agreements preventing, restricting or distorting competition) and Art. 82 EC Treaty (ex Art. 86 EEC Treaty; abuse of a dominant position).

Table 2: Open Network Provision (ONP) - Directives pursuant to Art. 95 EC Treaty
(ex Art. 100a EEC Treaty )

by means of the ONP Framework Directive	(directive 90/387/EEC as amended by directive 97/51/EC)
as well as a number of specific Directives:
• Directive on leased lines	(directive 92/44/EEC)
• Directive on general authorisations and individual licences	(directive 97/13/EC)
• Directive on voice telephony	(directive 95/62/EC as amended by directive 98/10/EC)
• Directive on interconnection	(directive 97/33/EC as amended by directive 98/61/EC)
• Directive on processing of personal data and the protection of privacy in the telecommunications sectors	(directive 97/66/EC)
as well as a number of Recommendations.

1)COM(87)290
2) It is the Community's objective to create a system ensuring that competition within the common market is not distorted, and a common market which is characterised by the abolition of obstacles to free movement of goods, persons, services and capital among the Member States.