After taking soundings from over 30 bodies, including unions, users, industry representatives and civil servants, the French Commission Nationale de la Communication et des Liberts has voiced qualified approval for government proposals to liberalise telecommunications. It stresses that any value-added network services that are licensed must be to international standards (there is fear in France […]
After taking soundings from over 30 bodies, including unions, users, industry representatives and civil servants, the French Commission Nationale de la Communication et des Liberts has voiced qualified approval for government proposals to liberalise telecommunications. It stresses that any value-added network services that are licensed must be to international standards (there is fear in France that IBM may seek to impose its own standards). It acknowledges that services may be offered in applications where international standards have not yet been established, but insists that they must be converted as soon as any international standards do emerge. It also points out that the trades unions are particularly concerned about how staffing will be affected by the changes, and insist that the link between posts and telecommunications must be maintained – similar opposition to the plan to split the West German Bundespost in two is being mounted by the unions there. The Commission also wants clearer definitions of basic transmission services on the one hand and value-added services on the other, and says that the ministry should decide on marginal cases for a trial period of no more than five years, thereafter handing dhe powers over to the Commission itself. It is not in principle against basic transmission services being offered by others than the Direction Generale de Telecommunications, DGT, but says that any such services must be licensed – and must be placed under the same constraints as the DGT itself. It also insists that there must be no creaming off by private operators of the most profitable services.
