By this decision, ANCOM proposes to define the relevant markets and to withdraw the price control obligation - including of cost-orienting the tariffs based on a cost accounting system -, which had been imposed on the National Radiocommunications Company S.A. (Radiocom), as the market analysis carried out by ANCOM indicated that this company no longer has significant market power.

 

Thus, the analysis of available information and historical data for the period 2009-2016 revealed that the Romanian Radio Broadcasting Company (SRR) and the Romanian Television Company (SRTV), the main buyers of broadcasting services provided by Radiocom, have important negotiating power, being able to exercise counteracting power and to influence the tariffs charged by the seller, and in fact to behave independently from it.

 

Under these circumstances, the Authority considers that Radiocom no longer has significant power in the following relevant wholesale markets:

The markets for analogue terrestrial broadcasting of public audio-visual programme services comprise the initial transmission in analogue format, by means of terrestrial radio-electric systems, of public audio-visual programme services on a national and local level, the carrying of such programme services over the electronic communications networks and the final transmission - in full and without modification - of these programmes, for end-user reception.

The withdrawal of the obligation imposed on Radiocom in the three markets will not affect the end-users of public television programme services, FM broadcasting programmes and AM broadcasting programmes. Thus, the users will not be affected - either directly, by a possible increase in the tariffs for radio and TV subscriptions (abolished as of 1.02.2017), or indirectly, by a possible decrease in the quality of programmes offered by SRTV and SRR (if the broadcasting costs increase driving to a lower production budget, since both SRTV and SRR have proved that they have power to negotiate the tariffs charged by Radiocom).

 

The draft decision on the identification of relevant markets for the services of analogue terrestrial broadcasting of public television and radio programme services is available, in Romanian, here. The interested parties are invited to submit comments and proposals by 06.11.2017, to the ANCOM headquarters (2 Delea Noua Street, Bucharest 3), directly to the ANCOM Registry Office or through 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.