Law no. 91/97 of 1 August ? the Telecommunications Basic Law ? was the first step towards changing the legal framework for telecommunications, which until then was adapted to regulate a market a market operating under an exclusive regime, with only some areas liberalised (value-added services, mobile services, data transmission via satellite and communications via satellite services), although the intention of gradual liberalisation was foreseen.
The said law led to a situation of openness, enouncing the principle of freedom to offer services and install and operate telecommunications networks, in accordance with the community framework in force, which envisaged liberalisation of services and networks until the achievement of full competition in telecommunications markets on 1 January 1998, despite the additional transition periods granted to four countries: Portugal, Spain, Ireland and Greece.
The following stand out among the measures enshrined from the start in the Telecommunications Basic Law:
- The principle of free provision of telecommunications services, as well as the freedom to establish, manage, operate and use public telecommunications networks, with the only derogation applying to the regime for fixed telephone service and respective network, which was maintained until 1 January 2000;
- The guarantee of interconnection via the basic telecommunications network, as well as via the networks of operators with significant market power;
- The consecration of the State?s guarantee as to the existence and availability of universal telecommunications service;
- The guarantee of the existence of a national numbering plan able to ensure full interoperability of public telecommunications networks and public use telecommunications services, as well as the gradual implementation of customer number portability.
To fulfil and develop the Telecommunications Basic Law, several regulatory documents were subsequently approved, which set out measures to introduce competition, applicable to the different tangible activities:
- Regime for access to the activity of public telecommunications network operator and public use telecommunications service provider (Decree-Law no. 381-A/97 of 30 December);
- Regime for interconnection between public telecommunications networks in an environment of open and competitive markets, to allow interoperability of public use telecommunications services and the general principles applicable to numbering (Decree-Law no. 415/98 of 31 December);
- Regulation on the operation of public telecommunications networks ? general conditions to be obeyed for the operation of public telecommunications networks in national territory, keeping in mind the supply of open network, including the supply of leased lines (Decree-law no. 290-A/99 of 30 July);
- Universal telecommunications service and regime for financing and price setting applicable to same (Decree-law no. 458/99 of 5 November);
- Regulation for the operation of fixed telephone service ( FTS) ? general conditions for the provision of FTS in national territory, at international level encompassing interconnection with networks or services from other countries, and general conditions for the installation and operation of public telephones for access to FTS applicable to the public telecommunications service concessionaire and to the other FTS providers and operators of fixed telephone networks (Decree-Law no. 474/99 of 5 November);
- Regulation for the operation of public use telecommunications services ? general conditions for the operation of public use telecommunications services (Decree-Law no. 290-B/99 of 30 July);
- Regime for the establishment and use of private telecommunications networks, to exclusively support services meant for own use or by a limited number of users, not involving remuneration or any commercial exploitation (Decree-Law no. 290-C/99 of 30 July).
The regulatory framework in force also includes the regime applicable to cable television, as per Decree-Law no. 241/97 of 18 September, which by transposing into the internal legal order Directive 95/51/EC of the Commission, of 18 October 1995, ended limits on the use of cable television networks to supply already liberalised telecommunications services. The said measure sets out the regime for access and exercise of the activity of public use cable distribution network operator in national territory. Subjacent is the principle of full access to that activity per authorisation and endorsing the possibility that the respective networks? capacity can provide other already liberalised telecommunications services, supported on same, specifically data transmission.
On the other hand, the PT Comunicações concession rested in 2002 on the bases approved by Decree-Law no. 40/95 of 15 February, revoked since then by Decree-Law no. 31/2003 of 17 February. The latter approved new bases for the concession in wake of the sale to the universal service provider of the basic network, following its alienation from the public domain of the State (Law no. 29/2002 of 6 December) and under terms of Council of Ministers Resolution no. 147/2002 of 26 December.
PT Comunicações thus currently holds the concession for development and operation of telecommunications infrastructures in the basic telecommunications network, and for the establishment, management and operation of the transport and diffusion infrastructures. The concession also has the goal of providing universal telecommunications service as well as fixed telex service, fixed switched data transmission service, telecommunications signal diffusion and distribution service, and telegraph service. The concession contract ends on 20 March 2025. The said measure which approved the new concession bases also stipulates that the concessionaire will continue to provide mobile maritime service temporarily, for the maximum period of one year.
