20.07.2017

 

The National Authority for Management and Regulation in Communications launches for public consultation a draft decision reviewing the secondary legislation in force on the quality (technical and administrative) indicators for the provision of the internet access service, as well as on the conditions and modalities for the providers’ publishing the values of these indicators’ parameters, in accordance with the national and European legislation.

The draft decision also establishes the quality parameters that can be measured by the end-users using Netograf.ro, so that they can monitor and assess the quality of the contracted service.

This draft decision will provide for the end-users’ easier access to relevant, comprehensive, accurate and comparable information, based on which they could assess the performance of their internet access service.

Scope of the draft decision

The draft decision is applicable to all the internet access services provided over public electronic communications networks, irrespective of the support used in the provision of these services.

 

Amendments proposed by the draft decision

 

Technical quality indicators

The technical quality indicators defined by ANCOM are those provided by the provisions of the Regulation (EU) 2015/2120 and of the BEREC Guidelines on the Implementation by National Regulators of European Net Neutrality Rules.

Internet access service providers have the obligation to include in contracts and to publish the values of the following quality parameters:

I.             For the internet access service provided over fixed networks:

• minimum data transfer speed;
• normally available data transfer speed;
• maximum and advertised data transfer speed, the advertised speed being the speed that a provider uses in commercial information releases.

II.           For the internet access service provided over mobile networks:

• maximum estimated speed and advertised data transfer speed.

Administrative quality indicators

According to the draft decision, the providers of Internet access services have the obligation to publish the value of the administrative quality parameters at least for the past two semesters, posting them on their own website, for the providers who have a website, or by displaying them at all their work points, in the case of providers who do not have a website. The set of quality administrative indicators/parameters includes: the term of providing the Internet access service, expressed in calendar days and calculated from the moment when an operator receives a request for the provision of the Internet access service, the failure repair time - expressed in Hours, the deadline for settling complaints received from end-users, other than those related to failures, expressed in days, frequency of end-users’ complaints, frequency of failure-related complaints, and frequency of invoicing accuracy-related complaints.

Obligations related to the Netograf.ro platform

Furthermore, the draft decision provides for the providers of Internet access services a series of obligations related to the online platform Netograf.ro, in order to support its optimal functioning, among which: not charging, counting, limiting or blocking data traffic consumed by end-users to and from Netograf.ro. Moreover, each provider will display on the home page of its own website, in an easily visible place, a direct link, with a suitable name, to this application made available to end-users by ANCOM.

Public consultation

The draft decision on setting the quality indicators for the provision of the internet access service, and on publishing the corresponding parameters is available – in Romanian – here. The interested persons are invited to submit comments and suggestions, by 01.09.2017, at the ANCOM headquarters in 2 Delea Noua Street, Bucharest 3, directly to the ANCOM Registry Office or by means of the Authority’s Regional Divisions. Comments may also be sent by fax to +40 372 845 402 or by e-mail to consultare@ancom.org.ro.