National Regulatory Agency for Electronic Communications and Information Technology of the Republic of Moldova

The National Regulatory Agency for Electronic Communications and Information Technology (ANRCETI) has placed on its web page, for public consultations, the draft (doc. in state language) modifications to ANRCETI Administrative Board Decision no.85 of 28.04.2009, on defining the list of relevant markets of electronic communications networks and/or services. The consultations are planned to last till February 4, 2013, this being the deadline for stakeholders to submit recommendations on this draft document.

The draft document provides for the repeal of section 10 of the Annex to ANRCETI Board Decision No. 85 of 28.04.2009. This means that Market 10 (Services of physical access to associated infrastructure of electronic communications networks), a market defined by the mentioned decision as susceptible to ex ante regulation, will be excluded from the list of relevant markets of electronic communications networks and/or services.

The Explanatory Note (doc. in state language) to the draft document contains the rationale arguments for the need to modify the decision. Two of the main arguments are: a) the need to bring the asymmetric (ex ante) regulations for access to network infrastructure at fixed locations in line with EU regulatory practices for significant market power and b) the existence of a gap in the legal framework, prohibiting ANRCETI to designate the provider that holds below 35% of a market as having significant power on that market (under Article 52 of Law on Electronic Communications, a provider, holding less that 35% of a relevant market, cannot be designated as having SMP on that market). ANRCETI identified these constraints after the analysis of Market 10 and public consultations (February - March 2012).

Having examined this state of things, ANRCETI decided to suspend the analysis of market 10, in order to subsequently exclude it from the list of markets defined by ANRCETI as susceptible to ex ante regulation. Also, pursuant to EU regulatory practices and Recommendation 2010/572/EU of 20.09.2010 on regulated access to next generation access networks (NGA), ANRCETI found it necessary to regulate the SMP of "Moldtelecom" on the market for access to ducts and telephone poles within the remedies for Market 4 (access to network infrastructure at a fixed location). Regarding the access to radio towers, ANRCETI will propose that this type of access be subject to symmetrical regulation by introducing the corresponding changes and amendments to the Regulations on Interconnection. According to ANRCETI’s opinion, this approach best meets the goal of efficient sharing of the infrastructure associated with radio communications networks between interested providers.

Interested stakeholders are invited to submit comments and recommendations on the document under public consultations, in written form, by mail to ANRCETI Address: 134, Stefan cel Mare, bd. MD-2012, Chisinau, Republic of Moldova, by fax: 022-222-885 and electronically to e-mail contact: office@anrceti.md. Telephone numbers: 022-251-335, 022-251-337.

January 21, 2013