Telecom package

The so-called Telecom Package , actually a package of directives to amend the regulatory framework for telecommunications networks , is a bundle of five directives at EU level in which European telecommunications framework legislation was created.

The bundle was adopted in November 2009 in the third reading. The legislative package was fiercely contested and had been in the preliminary voting phase since July 7, 2008 and was originally supposed to be adopted in September 2008 and then in early May 2009.

The legislative package was originally launched to strengthen consumer rights .

content

Framework Directive
Directive on the establishment of a European regulatory authority
Universal Service Policy
Privacy Policy (e-privacy)
Recommendation to the EU Commission for the development of a digital dividend

criticism

Critics such as the French activist group La Quadrature du Net see the net neutrality and fundamental rights of Internet users at risk through numerous amendments that were introduced during the legislative process .

The legislative package provides that Internet providers can be made liable for their customers' violations of the law and that they are therefore obliged to monitor and filter network traffic and to block Internet connections by order of improper courts.

The human rights organization Open Rights Group calls this "censorship". European internet users could be deterred from legal internet use by mandatory spyware. The voluntary storage and evaluation of connection data and the processing of traffic data independent of individual cases to guarantee network and information security are also criticized.

The suggestion that the EU states should be given the right to determine themselves which software applications are permitted for the Internet - and, if necessary, to subject them to a certification requirement , has also been vehemently criticized. The FFII said: “Tomorrow popular software applications like Skype or even Firefox could be declared illegal in Europe if they are not certified by an authority.” And further “This compromises the entire open development of the Internet as we know it today ".

The European data protection officer (EDPS) Peter Hustinx fundamentally criticizes the systematic IP address monitoring of all Internet users, including rights holders. In a statement dated September 2, 2008, he fears that continuously monitoring user behavior could serve as an entry point into a monitoring system.

In Parliamentarians' view, restrictions on certain fundamental rights are appropriate, proportionate and in line with applicable laws and democratic principles. Since the Internet is an indispensable tool for democratic processes and the formation of political will, there should be no censorship , especially of search engines , and the dissemination of controversial political views should not be pursued.

Conclusion

The following legislative changes are important for the end user:

Telecommunications providers of all kinds must in future also inform their users about possible data breaches. If, for example, personal data is lost from customers, those affected must be informed directly. In less severe cases, providers have to turn to their national regulatory authorities.

In the future, customers of landline or mobile phone providers will be able to change providers within a day and can take their phone number with them to the new provider .

When it comes to the question of whether people who have violated copyright regulations may be permanently deprived of access to the network, a formulation was added to the bundle with which the EU Parliament opposes net neutrality and consumer protection and on the part of large corporations. Access may be withdrawn, but the accused has the right to a "fair and independent legal process" within the framework of national law.

A final legal assessment of this and other passages by experts is still pending. Due to the clauses already introduced, but strongly criticized changes, the real-worldly effects of certain parts of the law must first be sounded out through model processes in the member countries.