The Upper Tribunal recently issued another decision under the new Electronic Communications Code (the “Code“) on its jurisdiction to impose an agreement pursuant to paragraph 20 of the Code – Cornerstone Telecommunications Infrastructure Limited -v- Compton Beauchamp Estates Limited [2019] UKUT 107 (LC). In summary, the Tribunal has no jurisdiction to impose rights under the … Continue Reading
The Upper Tribunal recently issued its first decision under the new Electronic Communications Code on the consideration and compensation payable by an operator to a site provider – EE Limited and Hutchison 3G Limited -v- The Mayor and Burgesses of The London Borough of Islington [2019] UK UT. Operators will welcome the decision as it … Continue Reading
CTIL v University of London [2018] The new Electronic Communications Code (“Code”) came into force on 28 December 2017 with its aim being to update telecommunications operators statutory rights to enable the installation, maintenance and use of telecoms equipment in order to operate their networks or provide an infrastructure network. Much of the drafting contained … Continue Reading
On the 29th October 2018, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sports published a consultation that focuses on addressing the issue of compelling landlords to consider the telecoms connectivity of their tenants and allowing Operators to install infrastructure where landlords are unresponsive. The consultation is specifically seeking views on proposals to support residential and … Continue Reading
[This is an updated version of my earlier blog piece from July to take account of revisions agreed through the legislative process since then. On 4th December the European Council concluded the legislative process for the new Code and the final text will be published in the EU Official Journal on 17 December, though no changes are … Continue Reading
[This is an updated version of my earlier blog piece from July to take account of revisions agreed through the legislative process since then.] *** The new European Communications Code (the “Code” – which I have blogged about here) will introduce a mechanism allowing investments in fibre networks made by operators with significant market power … Continue Reading
This blog piece sets out an overview of the regulation of broadband networks in the UK, both now and in the future. As can be seen from the (very recent) dates on the various document referred-to, this is an area which is changing rapidly at the moment, and is a strong focus of both regulatory … Continue Reading
**NOTE – THERE IS AN UPDATED VERSION OF THIS NOTE HERE ** The new European Communications Code (the “Code” – which we have blogged about here) will introduce a mechanism allowing investments in fibre networks made by operators with significant market power (SMP), in some circumstances, to be excluded from the normal access rules that are … Continue Reading
**NOTE THERE IS AN UPDATED VERSION OF THIS POST HERE** It is now almost two years since the European Commission proposed a new “European Electronic Communications Code” (the “Code”) which would amend and consolidate the current regime (dating from 2002). [i] On 29 June 2018 a new, amended, draft was published. This is expected to … Continue Reading
By Christoph Engelmann, Senior Associate, Hamburg DLA Piper recently advised a client (Transatel) on a very interesting matter leading to the German telecommunications regulator Bundesnetzagentur (BNetzA) issuing a landmark decision on the applicability of the Roaming Regulation on so-called 901 International Mobile Subscription Identities (IMSI). In this decision BNetzA ruled that the defendant in that … Continue Reading
Article by Catherine Gysels, DLA Piper Brussels According to Belgian criminal law, providers of telecommunication services are obliged to cooperate if an investigating judge orders a wiretap measure. In November 2017, Skype was found guilty of failing to give essential information and provide a wiretap on Skype calls as the company was considered as a … Continue Reading
The new Electronic Communications Code came into force on 28 December 2017. The intention behind the new Code is to introduce a range of measures to make it easier for telecoms operators to roll-out infrastructure. The Code therefore gives telecommunications operators statutory rights to enable the installation, maintenance and use of telecoms equipment in order … Continue Reading
Just a quick note to draw attention to a decision by BIPT, the regulator in Belgium here Lycamobile has been fined €30,000 for violation of the “roam like at home” requirements of the roaming regulation (contained in the 2012 regulation as amended in 2015). It appears that they were offering add-on bundles (at attractive prices) … Continue Reading
The Digital Economy Act finally became law prior to the dissolution of parliament at the start of the general election campaign. The Act contains within its pages the new Electronic Communications Code, which has been awaited for years and which many argue is essential to ensure the law is equipped to deal with advances in … Continue Reading
This note consolidates information we have available on the current (July 2017) status of telecoms regulator’s considerations of zero-rated offers in Europe. See also our other posts on zero-rating. Conclusion: Many European regulators are yet to consider the issue of net neutrality and zero-rated services following the 2015 Regulations. For those who have reached decisions since the … Continue Reading
My colleague Emil Odling, lead partner for IP and Technology in Stockholm, has written the piece below discussing a decision this week of the Swedish courts which suspends the decision of the Swedish regulator which would have required Telia to stop some practices on the basis that they infringe the net neutrality rules. Note that … Continue Reading
By Peter Elliott and Mike Conradi, DLA Piper By many accounts, the UK’s framework for regulating communications services is amongst the world’s most dynamic and successful. Leaving in its wake a telecommunications licensing regime, in 2003 the UK Government influenced and then implemented new EU Directives which took a different approach to regulating telecoms: general … Continue Reading
As new technologies emerge, and are treated differently across jurisdictions, businesses need to stay alert to changes in the regulatory landscape The chief disruptors in telecoms today are found in new media companies – businesses that often did not originate in the telecoms sector but who are increasingly challenging the incumbent players, and which most … Continue Reading
I was on a panel session for the Total Telecom Congress in London on Wednesday and thought i would share some observations gleaned from other speakers that are relevant to the media sector and it’s intersection with telecoms: Something like 20-30% of all mobile data traffic is advertising! This is – i think -an astonishing … Continue Reading
WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Telegram etc. might have to pay for their usage of telecom networks as their services can be substitutable of traditional telecom services. … Continue Reading
One quick thought on Brexit amongst many written today. It concerns the significant impact it will likely have on the price of international voice calls. All through the EU the price that mobile network operators (MNOs) can charge one another for terminating calls made to their own customers (called the “mobile termination rate” or MTR) … Continue Reading
I have already blogged a few times (eg here about perverse effects of net neutrality rules being applied always and everywhere as if there were some sort of human right to equal treatment of internet traffic. Specifically i expressed particular concern about the idea that there must be something wrong, in essence, with “zero rating” … Continue Reading
By Rob Shaw, Senior Associate and Ben Rogers, Legal Director – DLA Piper Proposals for reform of the Code have gathered pace recently; on Tuesday the Department of Culture, Media and Sport released the Government’s proposals to reform the Code and yesterday it was announced that the new Code will be part of the Digital … Continue Reading
I attended a seminar on the future of spectrum this morning. I thought there were a few interesting points, with international elements, that would be worth sharing: 1. As consumers use more and more data on their mobile devices lack of capacity is increasingly becoming an issue, even with the benefits of 4G. 2. Spectrum … Continue Reading
