# C_2005006EN.01002402.xml

| 8.1.2005 | EN | Official Journal of the European Union | C 6/24 |
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Reference for a preliminary ruling by the Cour d'Appel de Bruxelles, 9ème Chambre, by judgment of that court of 14 October 2004 in the case of Mobistar SA against Institut belge des services postaux et des télécommunications, joined parties, Belgacom Mobile SA and Base SA

(Case C-438/04)

(2005/C 6/46)

Language of the case: French

Reference has been made to the Court of Justice of the European Communities by judgment of the Cour d'Appel de Bruxelles, 9ème Chambre, (Court of Appeal, Brussels, Ninth Chamber) (Belgium) of 14 October 2004 received at the Court Registry on 19 October 2004, for a preliminary ruling in the case of Mobistar SA against Institut belge des services postaux et des telecommunications, joined parties, Belgacom Mobile SA and Base SA on the following questions:

With regard to the number portability facility provided for in Article 30 of Directive 2002/22/EC( 1 ) (Universal Service Directive):

| 1. | Does Article 30(2) of the Universal Service Directive, which provides that national regulatory authorities are to ensure that pricing for interconnection related to the provision of number portability is cost-oriented, refer only to costs related to traffic to the ported number, or does it also refer to tariffs of costs incurred by operators in executing requests for number porting? |
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| 2. | If Article 30(2) of the directive refers only to interconnection costs related to traffic to the ported number, must it be interpreted:
(a)
as leaving operators free to negotiate the commercial conditions for the facility and as prohibiting Member States from imposing ex ante commercial conditions on undertakings obliged to provide the number portability facility in respect of the services provided in relation to the execution of a request for porting? (b)
as not prohibiting Member States from imposing ex ante commercial conditions in respect of that facility on operators which have been designated as having significant market power in a particular market? | (a) | as leaving operators free to negotiate the commercial conditions for the facility and as prohibiting Member States from imposing ex ante commercial conditions on undertakings obliged to provide the number portability facility in respect of the services provided in relation to the execution of a request for porting? | (b) | as not prohibiting Member States from imposing ex ante commercial conditions in respect of that facility on operators which have been designated as having significant market power in a particular market? |
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| (a) | as leaving operators free to negotiate the commercial conditions for the facility and as prohibiting Member States from imposing ex ante commercial conditions on undertakings obliged to provide the number portability facility in respect of the services provided in relation to the execution of a request for porting? | | | | |
| (b) | as not prohibiting Member States from imposing ex ante commercial conditions in respect of that facility on operators which have been designated as having significant market power in a particular market? | | | | |

| 3. | If Article 30(2) of the directive must be interpreted as imposing on all operators the obligation of cost orientation in respect of the costs of number porting, must it be interpreted as precluding:
(a)
a national regulatory measure imposing a specific method of calculation for the calculation of the costs in question? (b)
a national measure which fixes ex ante the allocation of the costs between the operators? (c)
a national measure which empowers the national regulatory authority to fix ex ante for all operators and for a given period the maximum amount of the charges which the donor operator may claim from the recipient operator? (d)
a national measure which grants to the donor operator the right to apply the tariff set by the national regulatory authority, relieving that operator of the obligation to prove that the tariff which it applies is oriented to its own costs? | (a) | a national regulatory measure imposing a specific method of calculation for the calculation of the costs in question? | (b) | a national measure which fixes ex ante the allocation of the costs between the operators? | (c) | a national measure which empowers the national regulatory authority to fix ex ante for all operators and for a given period the maximum amount of the charges which the donor operator may claim from the recipient operator? | (d) | a national measure which grants to the donor operator the right to apply the tariff set by the national regulatory authority, relieving that operator of the obligation to prove that the tariff which it applies is oriented to its own costs? |
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| (a) | a national regulatory measure imposing a specific method of calculation for the calculation of the costs in question? | | | | | | | | |
| (b) | a national measure which fixes ex ante the allocation of the costs between the operators? | | | | | | | | |
| (c) | a national measure which empowers the national regulatory authority to fix ex ante for all operators and for a given period the maximum amount of the charges which the donor operator may claim from the recipient operator? | | | | | | | | |
| (d) | a national measure which grants to the donor operator the right to apply the tariff set by the national regulatory authority, relieving that operator of the obligation to prove that the tariff which it applies is oriented to its own costs? | | | | | | | | |

With regard to the right of appeal provided for by Article 4 of Directive 2002/21/EC( 2 ) (Framework Directive):

Must Article 4(1) of the Framework Directive be interpreted as meaning that the authority designated to hear and determine appeals must be able to have at its disposal all the information necessary for the merits of the case to be duly taken into account, including the confidential information on the basis of which the national regulatory authority adopted the decision which is the subject-matter of the appeal?

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( 1 )  Directive 2002/22/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 March 2002 on universal service and users' rights relating to electronic communications networks and services (Universal Service Directive) (OJ L 108 of 24.4.2002 p. 51).

( 2 )  Directive 2002/21/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 March 2002 on a common regulatory framework for electronic communications networks and services (Framework Directive) (OJ L 108 of 24.4.2002 p. 33).

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