ANCOM Issues the Notice of Approval for The Metropolitan Fiber Optic Network for Telecommunications of the Bucharest Municipality Netcity

30.05.2013

The Romanian Authority for Management and Regulation in Communications (ANCOM) has issued today the notice the technical and economic terms in which the electronic communications providers perform access to of approval regardingThe Metropolitan Fiber Optic Network for Telecommunications of the Bucharest Municipality – ”Netcity”, which is to be granted upon the implementation of certain measures. These measures were proposed taking into account the fact that the analysis performed by ANCOM revealed that the set of technical and economic terms for access to the Netcity network do not fulfil the requirements of non-discrimination, proportionality and objectivity provided by the law.

The notice of approval allows 4 months for performing the amendments and completions required by the Authority within the General Reference Offer and the Framework Agreements for access to the Netcity network.

Thus, in order to fulfil the non-discrimination obligation, a reference offer for access to infrastructure must be published, including at least the elements specified by ANCOM. Furthermore, the restrictions regarding the installation of a sole type of physical medium (fiber optic) in ducts should be removed and the fact that access can be denied unless objective criteria are met should be clearly specified. The offer must not include provisions that oblige the beneficiaries to purchase services they do not need and they have not requested, such as, for example, leasing at least two ducts for at least five years or binding the provision of access services to the purchase and payment of the services of installation supervision.

With a view to establishing the tariffs for access to the Netcity infrastructure on objective bases, in proportion to the resources paid for the provision of access services, tariff cost-orientation is necessary, based on a cost accounting system elaborated in accordance with a minimum set of criteria. ANCOM established a maximum term of six months for developing such a cost calculation model and for communicating it to the Authority. On a transitory basis, from the amendment of the offer and of the framework agreements until the awarding of ANCOM’s notice of approval for the economic conditions for access based on the cost calculation model, the tariffs charged by Netcity Telecom shall not exceed:

· 85 EUR/km/month, without VAT, for the duct lease service, including for the services so far provided by Netcity Telecom as ”junction”;

· 22 EUR/km/month, without VAT, for the service of dark fiber lease, including for the services so far provided by Netcity Telecom as ”FTTB branching”.

Moreover, compliance with the legal provisions of non-discrimination and proportionality involves the conclusion of one single type of contract for the same category of services, irrespective of the project development stage.

Furthermore, performance indicators need to be established for the services of access to the Netcity infrastructure, among which a maximum term for negotiating and concluding a contract for the services of access to ducts (two months), a maximum term of processing/confirming the request (maximum two working days from sending the request), a maximum term for making available the requested service (maximum four working days from sending the request) and maximum terms for trouble remedy, for all the types of access services provided.

The measures provided in this notice of approval are aimed at ensuring the possibility of open access to the metropolitan infrastructure for providers of electronic communications networks, in non-discriminatory, proportionate and objective conditions, for the purpose of fostering sustainable competition in the retail markets, thus providing for the supply of competitive services, to the benefit of the users of electronic communication services in Bucharest.