Telecommunications Council - 27 June 1997
The EU's Telecommunications Ministers met in Luxembourg on 27 June 1997. The Telecommunications Council held discussions on a number of policy issues relating to liberalization and technological development of telecommunications services in Europe. Firstly, the Council adopted a resolution on a numbering policy for telecommunications services in Europe. This recognizes the importance of numbering policy in facilitating consumer choice, particularly in the following areas: carrier pre-selection and call-by-call selection; number portability; and equal access to numbering resources for market players. The resolution calls on the Member States and the Commission to take measures necessary to realize the objectives of a European numbering policy. The Council adopted conclusions on the action plan for satellite communications, which acknowledges that action in the field should primarily be based on private sector initiatives. It calls on the Commission to take action to ensure full implementation of existing regulations, and examine possibilities for further initiatives in this fields. In the research field, the Commission is called on to ensure maximum complementarity of R&D efforts, and to develop research in the satellite communications field in the Fourth Framework Programme, and in the forthcoming Fifth Framework Programme. The Commission is also asked to request the standardization organizations to review their work in the field, and to evaluate possibilities for cooperation with third countries. The Council also adopted conclusions on the state of implementation of Community legislation in the telecoms sector, in view of the on-coming deadline of 1 January 1998. Finally, conclusions on the further development of mobile and wireless communications (UMTS) in Europe were adopted.