Emergency Services – The status of the regulatory framework within

Europe5th Emergency Services Workshop

Oct. 21, 2008

EICTA Contribution

About EICTA

EICTA, founded in 1999, is the voice of the European digital technology industry, which includes large and small companies in the Information and Communications Technology and Consumer Electronics Industry sectors.  It is composed of 61 major multinational companies and 40 national associations from 28 European countries. In all, EICTA represents more than 10,000 companies all over Europe with more than 2 million employees and over EUR 1,000 billion in revenues.

Company Members:

Adobe, Agilent, Alcatel-Lucent, AMD, Apple, Bang & Olufsen, Bose, Brother, Canon, Cisco, Corning, Dell, EADS, Elcoteq, Epson, Ericsson, Fujitsu, Hitachi, HP, IBM, Infineon, Ingram Micro, Intel, JVC, Kenwood, Kodak, Konica Minolta, Lexmark, LG Electronics, Loewe, Micronas, Microsoft, Motorola, NEC, Nokia, Nokia Siemens Networks, Nortel, NXP, Océ, Oki, Oracle, Panasonic, Philips, Pioneer, Qualcomm, Research In Motion, Samsung, Sanyo, SAP, Sharp, Siemens, Sony, Sony Ericsson, STMicroelectronics, Sun Microsystems, Texas Instruments, Thales, Thomson, Toshiba, UMC, Xerox

National Trade Associations: Austria: FEEI; Belarus: INFOPARK; Belgium: AGORIA; Bulgaria: BAIT; Cyprus: CITEA; Czech

Republic: ASE, SPIS; Denmark: DI ITEK, IT-Branchen; Estonia: ITL; Finland: FFTI; France: ALLIANCE TICS, SIMAVELEC; Germany: BITKOM, ZVEI; Greece: SEPE; Hungary: IVSZ; Ireland: ICT Ireland; Italy: ANIE, AITech-ASSINFORM; Malta: ITTS; Netherlands: ICT~Office, FIAR; Norway: ABELIA, IKT Norge; Poland: KIGEiT, PIIT; Romania: APDETIC; Slovakia: ITAS; Slovenia: GZS; Spain: AETIC, ASIMELEC; Sweden: IT&Telekomföretagen; Switzerland: SWICO, SWISSMEM; Turkey: ECID, TESID, TÜBISAD; Ukraine: IT Ukraine; United Kingdom: INTELLECT

Discussions and consultations over the last years have shown that...

Many people believe that VoIP services will soon be the standard voice connection and therefore be interconnected with the PSTN; emergency calling just like from the PSTN including the transmission of exact location data could become the normOn the other hand, many VoIP services can be used nomadically, which makes it difficult to distribute the adequate location information to the emergency call centersChallenges:

Have adequate technical standards that grant VoIP services access to emergency services Have a stable regulatory framework in place that allows for predicting whether access to emergency services has to be granted when operating a specific voice service or not.

Today‘s provisions at EU level

Today, legal provisions related to emergency service can be found in the Universal Service Directive.

Especially Articles 2, 6, 7, 23 and 26 of the Universal Service Directive deal with emergency services and the single European emergency call number 112.

Today‘s provisions – it‘s all about PATS

PATS = publicly available telephony service… “means a service available to the public for originating and receiving national and international calls and access to emergency services through a number or numbers in a national or international telephone numbering plan, and in addition may, where relevant, include one or more of the following services: the provision of operator assistance, directory enquiry services, directories, provision of public pay phones, provision of service under special terms, provision of special facilities for customers with disabilities or with special social needs and/or the provision of non-geographic services” Art 2 c USO Directive

Technology neutrality is a principle in the current regulatory review

This means that IP based services are not excluded from the scope

VoIP services may be PATSCurrent circular definition has led to different interpretation by Member StatesSubsequently, emergency call and intercept obligations may concern VoIP

Aspects of the current obligation

Access to emergency services also needs to be granted from

public pay telephones using the single European emergency call number 112 and other national emergency numbers, free of charge and without having to use any means of payment.

Network integrity: Member States shall ensure that undertakings providing publicly available telephone services at fixed locations take all reasonable steps to ensure uninterrupted access to emergency services.

Review of EU‘s regulatory framework

The PATS definition has been seen as problematic (circular definition). The European Commission has worked out proposals how to change this definition in the so-called review of the European Regulatory Framework for Telecommunications. In the European Parliament, a number of amendments 6, 20, (45), 48, 52, 62, 69, 75, 82, 87-91, 98 and 144 deal with the emergency service related provisions and have been adopted during the EP’s vote in Sept 2008.http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?type=TA&language=EN&reference=P6-TA-2008-0452

Review of PATS definition: Commission

Commission proposal Art 2 (c) USO Directive:

“publicly available telephone service” means a service available to the public for originating and receiving, directly or indirectly via carrier selection or pre-selection or resale, national and/or international calls through a number or numbers in a national or international telephone numbering plan;

Review of PATS definition: Parliament

(c) “publicly available telephone service” means a service available to the public for originating and/or receiving, directly or indirectly, national and/or international calls and other means of communication specifically intended for disabled users using text relay or total conversation services through a number or numbers in a national or international telephone numbering plan;

EICTA position on the definition of PATS

EICTA has concerns that the Commission’s proposed re-definition of PATS may also impose obligations on too broad a category of services. While EICTA strongly supports greater technology neutrality in the framework and welcomes the Commission’s efforts to clarify the definition of PATS by treating access to emergency services outside of the definition, the Commission’s proposed amendments to the PATS definition would benefit from a number of further clarifications.

Location information - Commission

Commission changes in Article 26 – paragraph 5Member States shall ensure that caller location information is made available free of charge to authorities handling emergencies for all calls to the single European emergency call number “112”. Member States shall require that caller location information is automatically provided as soon as the emergency call reaches the authority dealing with the emergency.

Location Information - Parliament

EP voted on changes in Article 26 – paragraph 5 [Amendment 90]Member States shall ensure that caller location information is made available free of charge and as soon as the emergency call reaches the authority handling the emergency. This shall also apply to all calls to the single European emergency call number “112”.

Location Information – EICTA position

EICTA notes that any caller location obligations must be appropriate, taking into account technical feasibility, and be aimed at providing location data to emergency authorities without mandating the technical means by which this objective should be achieved. At the same time national authorities must ensure that emergency service operators are able to adequately process the location data.

Commission proposal on contract disclosure of emergency calling features

Art 20 (4): Text porposed by Commission:Member States shall ensure that where contracts are concluded between subscribers and undertakings providing electronic communications services that allow voice communication, subscribers are clearly informed whether or not access to emergency services is provided. Providers of electronic communications services shall ensure that customers are clearly informed of the lack of access to emergency services in advance of the conclusion of a contract and regularly thereafter. EP proposes to delete that paragraph.

EICTA position on contract disclosure of emergency calling features

EICTA has concerns about (a) the scope of the disclosure requirements in contracts with end-users pertaining to whether or not access to emergency services is provided, and (b) as to how these should be implemented. It is important to have proper disclosure about the ability to make emergency calls, but we question whether it is reasonable and not overly burdensome to impose this obligation on all ‘electronic communication services that allow voice communication’. In addition, further clarification is needed on how the disclosures should be made. The proposal requires that ‘customers are clearly informed of the lack of access to emergency services in advance of the conclusion of a contract and regularly thereafter’ (article 20(4) Universal Service Directive). EICTA is concerned that this requirement is likely to lead to divergent requirements across Member States and in addition leaves providers with substantial uncertainties about compliance.

Other new/changed proposals I

EP wants changes in Article 23 USD« Member States shall take all necessary measures to ensure the fullest possible availability of publicly available telephone services in the event of catastrophic network breakdown or in cases of force majeure. Member States shall ensure that undertakings providing publicly available telephone services take all necessary measures to ensure uninterrupted access to emergency services from any place within the territory of the EU. »EICTA was against this amendment as it does not recognise the technical limitations faced by some service providers (particularly those that are independent of any particular network) in ensuring the availability of service and uninterrupted access to emergency services. Therefore, EICTA would like to see the wording “to the extent feasible” included in the text.

Other new/changed proposals II

EP wants changes in Article 26 – paragraph 2: Member States, in cooperation with national regulatory authorities, emergency services and providers, shall ensure that undertakings providing an electronic communications service for originating national and/or international calls through a number or numbers in a national or international telephone numbering plan provide reliable access to emergency services. [Amendment 87]EICTA was against AM 87, as it does not recognise technical limitations for providing access to emergency services.

Other new/changed proposals III

EP wants changes in Article 26 – paragraph 3:Member States shall ensure that the emergency services are able to appropriately respond to and handle all calls to the single European emergency call number "112" in a manner best suited to the national organisation of emergency systems. Such calls shall be answered and handled at least as expeditiously and effectively as calls to national emergency number or numbers, where these continue in use. [Amendment 88]

Other new/changed proposals IV

EP wants changes in Article 26 – paragraph 4:Member States shall ensure that disabled end-users have access to emergency services equivalent to that enjoyed by other end-users. The measures taken to ensure that disabled end-users are able to access emergency services while travelling in other Member States shall include ensuring compliance with relevant standards or specifications published in accordance with the provisions of Article 17 of Directive 2002/21/EC (Framework Directive). [Amendment 89]

Latest developments in EU member states

Germany:

From Jan. 2009 onward, providers of technically new forms of public telephony services (incl VoIP) need to provide access to emergency services

EICTA considerations on emergency service standardization for IP based services

It is important for manufacturing industry and users that standards enable compatibility of services through out the world.

EICTA very much supports your activities to make it happen

European electronic communications regulatory framework will require that IP based telecommunications service users have access to emergency services regardless where they are.

It is important the standards applied in Europe support the compatibility of services globally

Thank you very much!

Margit Brandl – margit.brandl@nsn.com

Chair EICTA Market Regulation Group