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64 Tariffs etc. for universal services | |
(1) It shall be the duty of OFCOM— | |
(a) to keep under review universal service tariffs; and | |
(b) to monitor changes to those tariffs. | |
(2) Universal service conditions may require one or more of the following— | 5 |
(a) the use of a common tariff, or of common tariffs, in relation to anything | |
mentioned in section 61(2); | |
(b) the use, in such cases as may be specified or described in the conditions, | |
of such special tariffs in relation to anything so mentioned as may be so | |
specified or described; | 10 |
(c) the fixing of tariffs used in accordance with the conditions by the use of | |
such methods, and by reference to such methods of computing costs, as | |
may be so specified or described. | |
(3) Universal service conditions must secure that customers of a designated | |
universal service provider are not required to subsidise other services by | 15 |
means of— | |
(a) the universal service tariffs of that provider; or | |
(b) other terms and conditions on which anything is provided, made | |
available or supplied to them in accordance with a universal service | |
condition. | 20 |
(4) For the purposes of subsection (3) customers of a designated universal service | |
provider subsidise other services to the extent that payments made by those | |
customers are used— | |
(a) to meet the cost of the provision, availability or supply (whether to | |
those customers or to other persons) of anything that is not required to | 25 |
be provided, made available or supplied in pursuance of a universal | |
service condition applying to that provider; or | |
(b) otherwise to pay for the provision, availability or supply of any thing | |
that is not so required. | |
(5) It shall be the duty of OFCOM, in setting a universal service condition about | 30 |
universal service tariffs, to have regard to anything ascertained by them in the | |
performance of their duty under subsection (1). | |
(6) References in this section to a universal service tariff are references to any of | |
the tariffs used by designated universal service providers in relation to the | |
things for the time being required by the universal service order. | 35 |
(7) In this section “tariff” includes a pricing structure. | |
65 Directories and directory enquiry facilities | |
(1) This section applies where universal service conditions require a designated | |
universal service provider— | |
(a) to supply a directory capable of being used in connection with the use | 40 |
of an electronic communications network or electronic | |
communications service; or | |
(b) to make available directory enquiry facilities capable of being used for | |
purposes connected with use of such a network or service. | |
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(2) The universal service conditions applied to the provider must include the | |
conditions that OFCOM consider appropriate for securing that the provider | |
does not unduly discriminate against a source of relevant information— | |
(a) in the compiling of the directory or the answering of directory | |
enquiries; or | 5 |
(b) in the treatment in the directory, or for the purposes of the facilities, of | |
any relevant information from that source. | |
(3) In this section— | |
(a) references to relevant information are references to information | |
provided for inclusion in the directory or for use in the answering of | 10 |
directory enquiries; and | |
(b) references to a source of relevant information are references to a | |
communications provider or designated universal service provider | |
who provides relevant information. | |
66 Review of compliance costs | 15 |
(1) OFCOM may from time to time review the extent (if any) of the financial | |
burden for a particular designated universal service provider of complying in | |
relation to any matter with any one or more of the universal service conditions | |
applied to him. | |
(2) Where— | 20 |
(a) regulations under section 62 require the financial burden of so | |
complying to be taken into account in determining whom to designate, | |
and | |
(b) the regulations provide for a particular method of calculating that | |
burden to be used for the purposes of that determination, | 25 |
that must be the method of calculation applied on a review under this section. | |
(3) Where subsection (2) does not apply, the financial burden of so complying is to | |
be taken to be the amount calculated by OFCOM to be the net cost of | |
compliance after allowing for market benefits accruing to the designated | |
universal service provider from— | 30 |
(a) his designation; and | |
(b) the application to him of universal service conditions. | |
(4) After carrying out a review under this section OFCOM must either— | |
(a) cause the calculations made by them on the review to be audited by a | |
person who appears to them to be independent of designated universal | 35 |
service providers; or | |
(b) themselves carry out an audit of those calculations. | |
(5) OFCOM must ensure, in the case of every audit carried out under subsection | |
(4), that a report on the audit— | |
(a) is prepared; and | 40 |
(b) if not prepared by OFCOM, is provided to them. | |
(6) It shall be the duty of OFCOM, in the case of every review under this section, | |
to publish— | |
(a) their conclusions on the review; and | |
(b) a summary of the report of the audit which was carried out as respects | 45 |
the calculations made for the purposes of that review. | |
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(7) The publication of anything under subsection (6) must be a publication in such | |
manner as OFCOM consider appropriate for bringing it to the attention of the | |
persons who, in their opinion, are likely to be affected by it. | |
67 Sharing of burden of universal service obligations | |
(1) This section applies where OFCOM— | 5 |
(a) have concluded, on a review under section 66, that complying in | |
relation to any matter with universal service conditions imposes a | |
financial burden on a particular designated universal service provider; | |
and | |
(b) have published that conclusion in accordance with that section. | 10 |
(2) OFCOM must determine, in the case of the designated universal service | |
provider, whether they consider it would be unfair for that provider to bear, or | |
to continue to bear, the whole or any part of so much of the burden. | |
(3) If— | |
(a) OFCOM determine that it would be unfair for the designated universal | 15 |
service provider to bear, or to continue to bear, the whole or a part of | |
the burden, and | |
(b) an application for a determination under this subsection is made to | |
OFCOM by that provider, | |
OFCOM may determine that contributions are to be made by communications | 20 |
providers to whom general conditions are applicable for meeting that burden. | |
(4) The making of any of the following must be in accordance with regulations | |
made by OFCOM— | |
(a) a determination by OFCOM of the extent of the financial burden that | |
exists for the designated universal service provider of complying in | 25 |
relation to any matter with universal service conditions; | |
(b) an application for the purposes of subsection (3)(b); | |
(c) a determination by OFCOM of whether it is or would be unfair for the | |
designated universal service provider to bear, or to continue to bear, | |
the burden of complying in relation to any matter with universal | 30 |
service conditions; | |
(d) a determination of the extent (if any) to which that is or would be | |
unfair. | |
(5) The assessment, collection and distribution of contributions under subsection | |
(3) is not to be carried out except in accordance with a mechanism provided for | 35 |
in a scheme contained in regulations made by OFCOM. | |
(6) It shall be the duty of OFCOM to exercise their power to make regulations | |
under this section in the manner which they consider will secure that the | |
assessment, collection and distribution of contributions under subsection (3) is | |
carried out— | 40 |
(a) in an objective and transparent manner; | |
(b) in a manner that does not involve, or tend to give rise to, any undue | |
discrimination against particular communications providers or | |
particular designated universal service providers, or against a | |
particular description of them; and | 45 |
(c) in a manner that avoids, or (if that is impracticable) at least minimises, | |
any distortion of competition or of customer demand. | |
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(7) Regulations made by OFCOM under this section may provide for a scheme | |
containing the provision mentioned in subsection (5), and for any fund set up | |
for the purposes of such a scheme, to be administered either— | |
(a) by OFCOM; or | |
(b) by such other person as may be specified in the regulations. | 5 |
(8) A person other than OFCOM is not to be specified in regulations under this | |
section as the administrator of such a scheme or fund unless he is a person who | |
OFCOM are satisfied is independent of both— | |
(a) the persons who are designated universal service providers; and | |
(b) communications providers to whom general conditions are applicable. | 10 |
(9) Section 392 applies to the powers of OFCOM to make regulations under this | |
section. | |
68 Report on sharing mechanism | |
(1) This section applies where regulations under section 67 provide for a scheme | |
for the assessment, collection and distribution of contributions under | 15 |
subsection (3) of that section. | |
(2) OFCOM must prepare and publish a report setting out, in relation to the period | |
to which it applies— | |
(a) every determination by OFCOM that has had effect in relation to a time | |
in that period as a determination of the costs of providing anything | 20 |
contained in the universal service order; | |
(b) the market benefits for each designated universal service provider that | |
have accrued to him during that period from his designation and from | |
the application to him of universal service conditions; and | |
(c) the contribution made under section 67(3) by every person who has | 25 |
made a contribution during that period. | |
(3) The first report under this section must be prepared in relation to the period of | |
twelve months beginning with the coming into force of the first regulations to | |
be made under section 67. | |
(4) Every subsequent report must be prepared in relation to the period of twelve | 30 |
months beginning with the end of the period to which the previous report | |
applied. | |
(5) Every report under this section— | |
(a) must be prepared as soon as practicable after the end of the period to | |
which it is to apply; and | 35 |
(b) must be published as soon as practicable after its preparation is | |
complete. | |
(6) OFCOM is not required under this section— | |
(a) to publish any matter that is confidential in accordance with subsection | |
(7) or (8); or | 40 |
(b) to publish anything that it would not be reasonably practicable to | |
publish without disclosing such a matter. | |
(7) A matter is confidential under this subsection if— | |
(a) it relates specifically to the affairs of a particular body; and | |
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(b) publication of that matter would or might, in OFCOM’s opinion, | |
seriously and prejudicially affect the interests of that body. | |
(8) A matter is confidential under this subsection if— | |
(a) it relates to the private affairs of an individual; and | |
(b) publication of that matter would or might, in OFCOM’s opinion, | 5 |
seriously and prejudicially affect the interests of that individual. | |
(9) The publication of a report under this section must be a publication in such | |
manner as OFCOM consider appropriate for bringing it to the attention of the | |
persons who, in their opinion, are affected by the matters to which it relates. | |
Access-related conditions | 10 |
69 Permitted subject-matter of access-related conditions | |
(1) The only conditions that may be set under section 41 as access-related | |
conditions are those authorised by this section. | |
(2) Access-related conditions may include conditions relating to the provision of | |
such network access and service interoperability as appears to OFCOM | 15 |
appropriate for the purpose of securing— | |
(a) efficiency on the part of communications providers and persons | |
making associated facilities available; | |
(b) sustainable competition between them; and | |
(c) the greatest possible benefit for the end-users of public electronic | 20 |
communications services. | |
(3) Access-related conditions may include conditions appearing to OFCOM to be | |
appropriate for securing that persons to whom the electronic communications | |
code applies participate, in cases where there are no viable alternative | |
arrangements that may be made, in arrangements for— | 25 |
(a) sharing the use of electronic communications apparatus; and | |
(b) apportioning and making contributions towards costs incurred in | |
relation to shared electronic communications apparatus. | |
(4) Access-related conditions may include one which— | |
(a) is of a technical or operational nature; | 30 |
(b) appears to OFCOM to be appropriate for securing the proper operation | |
of an electronic communications network in compliance with any SMP | |
services condition falling within section 83(3); and | |
(c) is applied to— | |
(i) a person who is required by such an SMP services condition to | 35 |
confer any entitlements to network access; or | |
(ii) a person on whom such an entitlement is or may be conferred | |
in pursuance of a requirement imposed by such an SMP | |
services condition. | |
(5) Access-related conditions may include conditions containing any provision | 40 |
required by section 71(2). | |
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