As monitoring the development of new technological systems is one of ICP-ANACOM?s concerns, activity in this area in 2002 encompassed international mobile telecommunications systems (IMT2000/UMTS), broadband radio access, digital terrestrial television (DTT), fixed wireless access (FWA), mobile trunking services, the IPv6 internet protocol, power line telecommunications (PLT) transmission systems, xDSL (digital subscriber line) and cable communications and T-DAB (terrestrial digital audio broadcasting).
Regarding international mobile telecommunications systems (IMT2000/UMTS), an ICP-ANACOM working group was set up in October 2002 to focus on the status and expected implementation of UMTS systems. This group drew up a report and proposals to submit to the tutelary entity, which were confirmed by Order no. 886/2003 of the Minister of the Economy of 30 December 2002. Under its terms the deadline to start the corresponding activity was pushed back to 31 December 2003. This order kept all the obligations in the assigned licences, including information society projects, which should be undertaken on the GSM/GPRS system if technically possible, and decided to apply a fee of zero for the usage of radio spectrum needed for UMTS services by those operators who begin commercial operations in 2003.
The deadline for the launch of commercial exploitation of the digital terrestrial television (DTT) platform was likewise postponed until 1 March 2003 at the request of the licensee ? Plataforma de Televisão Digital Portuguesa (PTDP) ? according to terms of Order no. 20095/2002 of the Minister of the Economy of 12 September, on the basis of a favourable opinion from ICP-ANACOM. Based on the licensee?s explanation, ICP-ANACOM issued a favourable opinion on cancellation of the respective licence, which was confirmed by the Ministry of the Economy.
