./.WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONG/TBT/Notif.98.451
2 September 1998
(98-3371)
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade
NOTIFICATION
The following notification is being circulated in accordance with Article 10.6.
1. Member to Agreement notifying:  SWITZERLAND
If applicable, name of local government involved (Articles 3.2 and 7.2):           
2. Agency responsible:  Federal Office for Communications
Agency or authority designated to handle comments regarding the notification shall be
indicated if different from above:           
3. Notified under Article 2.9.2 [ X ], 2.10.1 [    ], 5.6.2 [    ], 5.7.1 [   ], other:           
4. Products covered (HS or CCCN where applicable, otherwise national tariff heading.
ICS numbers may be provided in addition, where applicable):  Telecommunications
facilities: wire and radio communications facilities including terminal telecommunications
equipment and satellite earth station equipment within the meaning of Directive 98/13/EC
of 12 February 1998 (OJ No. L 74/ of 12 March 1998).
5. Title, number of pages and language(s) of the notified document: Telecommunications
Facilities Order (OIT)
6. Description of content:  Partial revision of the Telecommunications Facilities Order.
 The majority of the amendments proposed concern formal adaptation of the OIT
text to European law, which has been amended since the OIT was adopted.  The material
amendments concern the following:  the introduction of a transitional period if amendments
are made to the series of conformity assessment procedures applicable to
telecommunications facilities, the possibility of imposing requirements for approval when
this is justified, responsibility for marking equipment after approval, checkingtelecommunications facilities when a request for a concession is made, and the powers of
the Office.
7. Objective and rationale, including the nature of urgent problems where applicable:  As far
as the form is concerned, the Order had to be revised following the formal amendment of
European law -  the two European Directives (91/263/EEC and 93/97/EEC) on which the
OIT was based having been combined in a single Directive (98/13/EC).  As far as the
substance is concerned, practical experience in the beginning highlighted the need to makeminor adjustments.  These include the introduction of a transitional period during which a
facility can continue to be placed on the market even though the conformity assessment
procedure used no longer applies, and mi nor correction of the approval procedure.
Regarding the latter aspect, the emergence of ne w technologies with significant potential for
interference that are based on standards not yet established means that, for the effective
operation of telecommunications, safeguards have to be introduced in the form of
obligations, in principle of a technical nature, imposed on the owner of the approval.G/TBT/Notif.98.451
Page 2
8. Relevant documents:  Order of 6 Oc tober 1997 on Telecommunications Facilities
(RS 784.101.2;  RO 1997 2853)
9. Proposed date of adoption:
Proposed date of entry into force:}1 January1999 or possibly 1 February 1999
10. Final date for comments:  30 October 1998
11. Texts available from:  National enquiry point [ X ] or address, e-mail and telefax number of
the other body: