New rules for telecommunications and telecom operators

Automatic summary, not yet reviewed

1. The law regulates telecommunications but excludes audiovisual content and information society services that do not mainly consist of transporting signals.
2. Individual authorizations and licenses for operators disappear. Operators only need to notify the Comisión del Mercado de las Telecomunicaciones (Telecommunications Market Commission)Comisión del Mercado de las Telecomunicaciones (Telecommunications Market Commission) A public body that oversees telecommunications markets, resolves disputes between operators, and imposes sanctions. beforehand, which keeps a public register of operators.
3. The Telecommunications Market Commission analyzes markets at least every two years and can impose obligations (transparency, non-discrimination, price controls) on operators with significant market power.
4. The universal service is guaranteed: connection to the fixed phone network with functional internet access, subscriber directories, payphones, and equivalent conditions for people with disabilities, funded through a national fund.
5. Subscribers can keep their phone number when switching operators and can choose their operator on each call or through preselection.
6. Operators have the right to occupy public domain and, when strictly necessary, private property to install their networks, under equal and transparent conditions.
7. Users gain rights: contracts with minimum content, compensation for service interruptions, itemized-free bills, protection against unsolicited commercial calls, and the right to end contracts without penalty in certain cases.
8. Offenses are classified as very serious, serious, and minor, with fines of up to €20 million in the most serious cases. Sanctions expire after three years, two years, or six months depending on their severity.

Who it affects

• Telecommunications operators: They no longer need an individual license: they notify their activity, register, and are subject to fees, market obligations, and sanctions.
• Users and consumers: They gain rights such as keeping their number, compensation for outages, non-itemized bills, and protection against unwanted commercial calls.
• People with disabilities and groups with special needs: They are guaranteed access to phone service and universal service elements on equivalent conditions.
• Public administrations: They must allow occupation of public domain and private property to install networks, respecting equality and transparency.

Words worth knowing

Servicio universal (universal service)

A set of basic communications services guaranteed to all users regardless of where they live, at an affordable price.

Operador con poder significativo en el mercado (operator with significant market power)

A company with enough economic strength to act independently of its competitors and customers.

Dominio público radioeléctrico (radioelectric public domain)

The radio frequency spectrum, which is a public asset managed by the State.

Interconexión (interconnection)

The connection between different operators' networks so their users can communicate with each other.

Comisión del Mercado de las Telecomunicaciones (Telecommunications Market Commission)

A public body that oversees telecommunications markets, resolves disputes between operators, and imposes sanctions.

It summarizes the law as published in the BOE. It is written by artificial intelligence and may contain mistakes: the official text is what counts. Read the official text · How we make summaries