2003/548/EC: Commission Decision of 24 July 2003 on the minimum set of leased lines with harmonised characteristics and associated standards referred to in Article 18 of the Universal Service Directive

Commission Decision
of 24 July 2003
on the minimum set of leased lines with harmonised characteristics and associated standards referred to in Article 18 of the Universal Service Directive
(2003/548/EC)
THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,
Having regard to 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)(1) and in particular Article 18(3) thereof,
Whereas:
(1) Article 18(3) of the Universal Service Directive provides for the publication of the minimum set of leased lines with harmonised characteristics and associated standards to be published in the Official Journal of the European Union as part of the list of standards referred to in Article 17 of 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)(2).
(2) The minimum set of leased lines was defined in Annex II to Council Directive 92/44/EEC of 5 June 1992 on the application of open network provision (ONP) to leased lines(3), as last amended by Commission Decision 98/80/EC(4). That Directive was repealed with effect from 25 July 2003 by the Framework Directive.
(3) This Decision provides continuity of the legal basis for the minimum set of leased lines, for the purpose of implementation of the relevant provisions in the Framework Directive and the Universal Service Directive. The minimum set of leased lines in this Decision is the same as that in Directive 92/44/EEC, except that the references to European Telecommunications Standards (ETSs) have been replaced by references to European Standards (EN), as agreed by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute in 2001. However, leased lines that comply with the previous ETS standards should continue to be deemed in accordance with the requirements for the minimum set of leased lines.
(4) This Decision identifies the minimum set of leased lines with harmonised characteristics and associated standards and forms an integral part of the list of standards published in accordance with Article 17 of the Framework Directive 2002/21/EC. The current version of the list of standards, only containing voluntary provisions, was published in the Official Journal of the European Union in December 2002(5). For reasons of differences in procedure and in legal effect, it is appropriate to distinguish the chapters of the list of standards that include mandatory provisions in this Decision from those chapters that only include voluntary provisions.
(5) The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Communications Committee,