Commission adopts telecoms regulation package
The European Commission has adopted the fifth report on the implementation of the telecommunications regulatory package, which concludes that the regulatory framework now in place will speed up the telecommunications services markets in Member States. The report, which was adopted by the Commission on 11 November 1999, will now pass to the European Parliament, the Council, the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions for their consideration. It examines the state of implementation of the current telecommunications regulatory framework prior to the Commission review of its operation and the introduction of proposals to adapt it to market and technological developments. The report outlines how the principles of the harmonisation directives have been transposed into national law and how these national laws apply in practice. This assessment is backed up by an overview of the current status of telecommunications services markets in Member States. The key conclusion is that 21 months after the introduction of full competition, the regulatory framework is now driving Member States' telecommunications services markets which have shown accelerating growth, large numbers of market entrants and falling tariffs. Also noted in the report are the major outstanding barriers to the achievement of a single European market, and the elements that should be included in the revised regulatory framework that will follow the Commission's review.