Mobile and personal communications

OBJECTIVE: to liberalize the mobile telecommunications market (networks and services) in the European Union from 1 January 1996. CONTENT: the Commission's draft directive seeks to amend Directive 90/388/EEC on competition in the markets for telecommunications services and is based on Article 90 (3) of the EC Treaty. It calls on the Member States to: - abolish all exclusive or special rights in the area of mobile telecommunications; - introduce procedures for granting licences for new services such as those based on DCS 1800 and DECT standards (which may benefit current or future GSM operators in particular); - allocate frequencies on the basis of objective criteria and with minimum restrictions; - abolish all restrictions on the use of networks (own infrastructures and interconnection with existing networks) for mobile telecommunications operators. The draft directive also makes provisions for: - Spain, Greece, Ireland and Portugal to apply for derogations of up to 5 years (as of 1 January 1996); - Luxembourg to qualify for the same derogations for a period of 2 years.�