Another meeting of the European Union’s (EU) Council of Transport, Telecommunications and Energy was held on 1 and 2 December 2005, from which resulted a series of important measures in the scope of electronic communications.
The Council established as priorities for 2006 the review of the current electronic communications regulatory framework, adopted in 2003, and of the Recommendation from the European Commission on relevant markets.
Regarding the transition from analogue to digital television broadcasting, the Council recommended, among other aspects, that all Member States publish, in 2006, proposals for the transition from analogue to digital broadcasting and try to complete the switchover in 2012. It also highlighted the importance of the promotion of the debate on the policy for the radio spectrum use, especially concerning the future needs of pan-European services.
In the scope of the i2010 Strategy: A European information society for growth and employment, approved in 2005 and which corresponds to the update of the Lisbon Strategy, the Council invited the Commission to both review the impact of digital convergence on the creation, circulation and distribution of European contents, as well as to present proposals for the promotion of a market for digital contents, the increase in broadband use and the development of new generation networks. The Commission must also present, in 2006, a strategy for the development of a safe “European Information Space”, with the support of the European Network and Information Safety Agency (ENISA).
The Council invited Member States to assure the full implementation of the electronic communications regulatory framework and to finish their markets analysis, as well as to promote a more efficient and flexible use of the radio spectrum.
In the framework of electronic accessibility, the Council encourages Member States to promote the access to information and communication technologies (ICT) by citizens with disabilities, to continue to apply the guidelines on accessibility on the Public Administration’s Internet sites and to use all tools available to promote electronic accessibility.
The Council recommends that the Commission, among other measures, investigates the role that certification might play in the increase of electronic accessibility and that a conjoined work is maintained between national and European standardization bodies, aiming at promoting electronic accessibility standards.
Further information:
- Conclusões (versão provisória) - em francês http://ue.eu.int/ueDocs/cms_Data/docs/pressData/fr/trans/85470.pdf
- Conclusions du Conseil sur accélération de la transition de la radiodiffusion analogique à la radiodiffusion numérique (em francês) http://ue.eu.int/ueDocs/cms_Data/docs/pressData/fr/trans/87289.pdf
- Conclusions du Conseil sur sur "l'e-accessibilité" (em francês) http://ue.eu.int/ueDocs/cms_Data/docs/pressData/fr/trans/87287.pdf
- Conclusions du Conseil sur la stratégie "i2010 - Une société de l'information pour la croissance et l'emploi" (em francês) http://ue.eu.int/ueDocs/cms_Data/docs/pressData/fr/trans/87284.pdf
Related information on ANACOM's website:
- The Council https://www.anacom.pt/render.jsp?categoryId=66657
