Government starts work on amendment to Telecommunications Law
2007-06-21
The government is about to debate the Telecommunication Law amendment intended to make the telecoms market in Poland more consumer-friendly. According to Antoni Mezydlo, a Law and Justice (PiS) party MP quoted by the press, the amendment might come into force at the beginning of 2008.
The draft amendment envisages that a subscriber will be entitled to receive a list of calls for two years instead of one year, as is the case now. In addition, the right to terminate the subscription without any financial penalty after the operator has changed the rules of service provision is to be upheld. The new regulation is intended to prevent the sending of spam messages; the fine for this could be as much as PLN 100,000 (€26,500).
Experts quoted by Gazeta Wyborcza have said that the amendment might prompt operators to withdraw from promotional offers, as the draft regulation does not allow them to terminate a contract with a subscriber who does not pay. The prices of handsets might, therefore, rise, as the telcos try to prevent dishonest subscribers from using the phones without paying.
The Office of Electronic Communications (UKE) would be in a stronger position because of the amendment. The regulator emphasises that it would introduce an obligation on the part of the operators to pay a deposit when they are fined by the UKE. The deposit will be repaid if the fine is overturned by the court. At the moment, the fine is paid only after the courts have processed the appeals and the decision has come into force.