Regulation (EC) No 2887/2000 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2000 on unbundled access to the local loop (Text with EEA relevance)
Date: 2000-12-18
Institutions: Council of the European Union, European Parliament
Subjects: communications policy, competition law, police cooperation, supplies contract, telephone, transmission network

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I

(Acts whose publication is obligatory)

REGULATION (EC) No 2887/2000 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL

of 18 December 2000

on unbundled access to the local loop

(Text with EEA relevance)

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE
EUROPEAN UNION,

(3)

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community, and in particular Article 95 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social
Committee (1),

Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article
251 of the Treaty (2),

Whereas:

of

the

loop’

telecommunications

is the physical twisted metallic pair
The ‘local
circuit in the fixed public telephone network connecting
the network termination point at the subscriber's prem-
ises to the main distribution frame or equivalent facility.
As noted in the Commission's Fifth Report on the imple-
regulatory
mentation
package, the local access network remains one of the
least competitive segments of the liberalised telecommu-
nications market. New entrants do not have widespread
alternative network infrastructures and are unable, with
traditional technologies, to match the economies of scale
and the coverage of operators designated as having
significant market power in the fixed public telephone
network market. This results from the fact that these
operators rolled out their metallic local access infrastruc-
tures over significant periods of
time protected by
exclusive rights and were able to fund investment costs
through monopoly rents.

(1)

(2)

The conclusions of the European Council of Lisbon of
23 and 24 March 2000 note that, for Europe to fully
seize the growth and job potential of the digital, knowl-
edge-based economy, businesses and citizens must have
access to an inexpensive, world-class communications
infrastructure and a wide range of services. The Member
States, together with the Commission, are called upon to
work towards introducing greater competition in local
access networks before the end of 2000 and unbundling
the local loop, in order to help bring about a substantial
reduction in the costs of using the Internet. The Feira
European Council of 20 June 2000 endorsed the
proposed ‘e-Europe’ Action Plan which identifies
unbundled access to the local
loop as a short-term
priority.

Local loop unbundling should complement the existing
provisions in Community law guaranteeing universal
service
citizens by
enhancing competition, ensuring economic efficiency
and bringing maximum benefit to users.

and affordable

access

for

all

(1) Opinion delivered on 19 October 2000 (not yet published in the

Official Journal).

(2) Opinion of the European Parliament of 26 October 2000 (not yet
published in the Official Journal) and Decision of the Council of 5
December 2000.

(4)

(5)

review stresses

The European Parliament Resolution of 13 June 2000
on the Commission communication on the 1999
Communications
the importance of
enabling the sector to develop infrastructures which
promote the growth of electronic communications and
e-commerce and the importance of regulating in a way
that supports this growth. It notes that the unbundling
of the local loop currently concerns mainly the metallic
infrastructure of a dominant entity and that investment
in alternative infrastructures must have the possibility of
ensuring a reasonable rate of return, since that might
facilitate the expansion of these infrastructures in areas
where their penetration is still

low.

The provision of new loops with high capacity optical
fibre directly to major users is a specific market that is
developing under competitive conditions with new
investments. This Regulation therefore addresses access
to metallic local
loops, without prejudice to national
obligations regarding other types of access to local infra-
structures.

(6)

(7)

(8)

(9)

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It would not be economically viable for new entrants to
duplicate the incumbent's metallic local access infra-
structure in its entirety within a reasonable time. Altern-
ative infrastructures such as cable television, satellite,
loops do not generally offer the same
wireless local
though
functionality or ubiquity for the time being,
situations in Member States may differ.

tory authority may, in accordance with Community law,
intervene on its own initiative in order to ensure fair
competition, economic efficiency and maximum benefit
for end-users. Failure of the notified operator to meet
lead times should entitle the beneficiary to receive
compensation.

(11)

Unbundled access to the local loop allows new entrants
to compete with notified operators in offering high bit-
rate data transmission services for continuous Internet
access and for multimedia applications based on digital
technology as well as voice
subscriber
telephony services. A reasonable request for unbundled
access implies that the access is necessary for the provi-
sion of the services of the beneficiary, and that refusal of
the request would prevent, restrict or distort competition
in this sector.

line (DSL)

loops and related
Costing and pricing rules for local
facilities should be transparent, non-discriminatory and
objective to ensure fairness. Pricing rules should ensure
that the local loop provider is able to cover its appro-
priate costs in this regard plus a reasonable return, in
order to ensure the long term development and upgrade
of local access infrastructure. Pricing rules for local loops
should foster fair and sustainable competition, bearing
in mind the need for investment in alternative infrastruc-
tures, and ensure
is no distortion of
competition, in particular no margin squeeze between
prices of wholesale and retail services of the notified
operator. In this regard, it is considered important that
competition authorities be consulted.

there

that

This Regulation mandates unbundled access to the
metallic local loops only of notified operators that have
been designated by their national regulatory authorities
as having significant market power in the fixed public
telephone network supply market under the relevant
Community provisions (hereinafter referred to as ‘noti-
fied operators’). Member States have already notified to
the Commission the names of
those fixed public
network operators which have significant market power
under Annex I, Part 1, of Directive 97/33/EC of the
European Parliament and of the Council of 30 June
1997 on interconnection in telecommunications with
regard to ensuring universal service and interoperability
through application of the principles of open network
provision (ONP) (1), and Directive 98/10/EC of the Euro-
pean Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 1998
on the application of open network provision to voice
telephony and on universal service for telecommunica-
tions in a competitive environment (2).

A notified operator cannot be required to provide types
of access which are not within its powers to provide, for
example where fulfilment of a request would cause a
violation of the legal rights of an independent third
party. The obligation to provide unbundled access to the
local loop does not imply that notified operators have to
install entirely new local network infrastructure specifi-
cally to meet beneficiaries' requests.

(12) Notified operators

should provide information and
unbundled access to third parties under the same condi-
tions and of the same quality as they provide for their
own services or to their associated companies. To this
end,
the publication by the notified operator of an
adequate reference offer for unbundled access to the
local loop, within a short time-frame and ideally on the
Internet, and under
the
national regulatory authority, would contribute to the
creation of transparent and non-discriminatory market
conditions.

the supervisory control of

(13)

(14)

In its Recommendation 2000/417/EC of 25 May 2000
loop enabling the
on unbundled access to the local
competitive provision of a full
range of electronic
communications services including broadband multi-
media and high-speed Internet (3) and its Communi-
cation of 26 April 2000 (4), the Commission set out
detailed guidance to assist national regulatory authorities
on the fair regulation of different forms of unbundled
access to the local

loop.

In accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set
out in Article 5 of the Treaty, the objective of achieving
a harmonised framework for unbundled access to the
local loop in order to enable the competitive provision
of an inexpensive, world-class communications infra-
structure and a wide range of services for all businesses
and citizens in the Community cannot be achieved by
the Member States in a secure, harmonised and timely
manner and can therefore be better achieved by the
Community. In accordance with the principle of propor-
tionality as set out in that Article, the provisions of this

(10) Although commercial negotiation is

the preferred
method for reaching agreement on technical and pricing
issues for local
loop access, experience shows that in
most cases regulatory intervention is necessary due to
imbalance in negotiating power between the new
entrant and the notified operator, and lack of other
alternatives. In certain circumstances the national regula-

(1) OJ L 199, 26.7.1997, p. 32. Directive as amended by Directive 98/

61/EC (OJ L 268, 3.10.1998, p. 37).

(2) OJ L 101, 1.4.1998, p. 24.

(3) OJ L 156, 29.6.2000, p. 44.
(4) OJ C 272, 23.9.2000, p. 55.

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Regulation do not go beyond what is necessary in order
to achieve this objective for that purpose. They are
adopted without prejudice
to national provisions
complying with Community law which set out more
detailed measures,
for example dealing with virtual
collocation.

(15)

telecommunications,

This Regulation complements the regulatory framework
for
in particular Directives 97/
33/EC and 98/10/EC. The new regulatory framework for
electronic communications should include appropriate
provisions to replace this Regulation,

HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Aim and Scope

This Regulation aims at

intensifying competition and
1.
innovation on the local access
stimulating technological
through the setting of harmonised conditions for
market,
unbundled access to the local loop, to foster the competitive
provision of a wide range of electronic communications
services.

This Regulation shall apply to unbundled access to the
2.
local loops and related facilities of notified operators as defined
in Article 2(a).

This Regulation shall apply without prejudice to the obli-
3.
gations for notified operators to comply with the principle of
non-discrimination, when using the fixed public telephone
network in order to provide high speed access and transmis-
sion services to third parties in the same manner as they
provide for their own services or to their associated companies,
in accordance with Community provisions.

to maintain or

4.
This Regulation is without prejudice to the rights of
in
Member States
conformity with Community law which contain more detailed
provisions than those set out in this Regulation and/or are
outside the scope of this Regulation inter alia with respect to
other types of access to local

introduce measures

infrastructures.

Article 2

Definitions

For the purposes of this Regulation the following definitions
apply:

(a) ‘notified operator’ means operators of fixed public tele-
phone networks
that have been designated by their
national regulatory authority as having significant market
power in the provision of fixed public telephone networks

and services under Annex I, Part 1, of Directive 97/33/EC
or Directive 98/10/EC;

(b) ‘beneficiary’ means a third party duly authorised in accord-
ance with Directive 97/13/EC (1) or entitled to provide
legislation, and
communications services under national
which is eligible for unbundled access to a local

loop;

(c) ‘local loop’ means the physical twisted metallic pair circuit
connecting the network termination point at the subscrib-
er's premises to the main distribution frame or equivalent
facility in the fixed public telephone network;

(d) ‘local sub-loop’ means a partial local loop connecting the
network termination point at the subscriber's premises to a
concentration point or a specified intermediate access point
in the fixed public telephone network;

(e) ‘unbundled access to the local loop’ means full unbundled
access to the local loop and shared access to the local loop;
it does not entail a change in ownership of the local loop;

(f) ‘full unbundled access to the local loop’ means the provi-
sion to a beneficiary of access to the local loop or local sub
loop of the notified operator authorising the use of the full
frequency spectrum of the twisted metallic pair;

(g) ‘shared access to the local loop’ means the provision to a
beneficiary of access to the local loop or local sub loop of
the notified operator, authorising the use of the non-voice
band frequency spectrum of the twisted metallic pair; the
local loop continues to be used by the notified operator to
provide the telephone service to the public;

(h) ‘collocation’ means the provision of physical space and
technical facilities necessary to reasonably accommodate
and connect the relevant equipment of a beneficiary, as
mentioned in Section B of the Annex;

(i) ‘related facilities’ means the facilities associated with the
provision of unbundled access to the local loop, notably
collocation, cable connections and relevant
information
technology systems, access to which is necessary for a
beneficiary to provide services on a competitive and fair
basis.

Article 3

Provision of unbundled access

1.
Notified operators shall publish from 31 December 2000,
and keep updated, a reference offer for unbundled access to
their local loops and related facilities, which shall include at
least the items listed in the Annex. The offer shall be suffi-
ciently unbundled so that the beneficiary does not have to pay
for network elements or facilities which are not necessary for
the supply of its services, and shall contain a description of the
the offer, associated terms and conditions,
components of
including charges.

(1) Directive 97/13/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council
of 10 April 1997 on a common framework for general authorisa-
tions and individual
telecommunications
licences in the field of
services (OJ L 117, 7.5.1997, p. 15).

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Notified operators shall from 31 December 2000 meet
2.
reasonable requests from beneficiaries for unbundled access to
their local loops and related facilities, under transparent, fair
and non-discriminatory conditions. Requests shall only be
refused on the basis of objective criteria, relating to technical
feasibility or the need to maintain network integrity. Where
access is refused, the aggrieved party may submit the case to
the dispute resolution procedure referred to in Article 4(5).
Notified operators shall provide beneficiaries with facilities
equivalent to those provided for their own services or to their
associated companies, and with the same conditions and time-
scales.

3. Without prejudice to Article 4(4), notified operators shall
charge prices for unbundled access to the local loop and related
facilities set on the basis of cost-orientation.

Article 4

Supervision by the national regulatory authority

The national

1.
regulatory authority shall ensure that
charging for unbundled access to the local loop fosters fair and
sustainable competition.

2.

The national regulatory authority shall have the power to:

(b) require notified operators to supply information relevant

for the implementation of this Regulation.

3.
The national regulatory authority may, where justified,
intervene on its own initiative in order to ensure non-discrim-
ination, fair competition, economic efficiency and maximum
benefit for users.

4. When the national regulatory authority determines that
it shall
the local access market
relieve the notified operators of the obligation laid down in
Article 3(3) for prices to be set on the basis of cost-orientation.

is sufficiently competitive,

between

Disputes

undertakings

5.
issues
included in this Regulation shall be subject to the national
dispute resolution procedures established in conformity with
Directive 97/33/EC and shall be handled promptly, fairly and
transparently.

concerning

Article 5

Entry into force

(a) impose changes on the reference offer for unbundled access
including prices,
loop and related facilities,

to the local
where such changes are justified; and

This Regulation shall enter
into force on the third day
following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the
European Communities.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

Done at Brussels, 18 December 2000.

For the European Parliament

The President

N. FONTAINE

For the Council

The President

D. VOYNET

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ANNEX

MINIMUM LIST OF ITEMS TO BE INCLUDED IN A REFERENCE OFFER FOR UNBUNDLED ACCESS TO THE
LOCAL LOOP TO BE PUBLISHED BY NOTIFIED OPERATORS

A. C o n d i t i o n s f o r u n b u n d l e d a c c e s s t o t h e l o c a l

l o o p

1. Network elements to which access is offered covering in particular the following elements:

(a) access to local

loops;

(b) access to non-voice band frequency spectrum of a local loop, in the case of shared access to the local loop;

2. Information concerning the locations of physical access sites (1), availability of local loops in specific parts of the

access network;

3. Technical conditions related to access and use of local loops, including the technical characteristics of the twisted

metallic pair in the local

loop;

4. Ordering and provisioning procedures, usage restrictions.

B. C o l l o c a t i o n s e r v i c e s

1. Information on the notified operator's relevant sites (1);

2. Collocation options at the sites indicated under point 1 (including physical collocation and, as appropriate, distant

collocation and virtual collocation);

3. Equipment characteristics: restrictions,

if any, on equipment that can be collocated;

4. Security issues: measures put in place by notified operators to ensure the security of their locations;

5. Access conditions for staff of competitive operators;

6. Safety standards;

7. Rules for the allocation of space where collocation space is limited;

8. Conditions for beneficiaries to inspect the locations at which physical collocation is available, or sites where

collocation has been refused on grounds of lack of capacity.

C. I n f o r m a t i o n s y s t e m s

Conditions for access to notified operator's operational support systems,
pre-ordering, provisioning, ordering, maintenance and repair requests and billing.

information systems or databases for

D. S u p p l y c o n d i t i o n s

1. Lead time for responding to requests for supply of services and facilities; service level agreements, fault resolution,

procedures to return to a normal

level of service and quality of service parameters;

2. Standard contract terms, including, where appropriate, compensation provided for failure to meet lead times;

3. Prices or pricing formulae for each feature, function and facility listed above.

(1) Availability of this information may be restricted to interested parties only,

in order to avoid public security concerns.