Headquarters Agreement and operating conditions
1. The arrangements concerning the accommodation to be provided for the BEREC Office in the host Member State and the facilities to be made available by that Member State as well as the specific rules applicable in the host Member State to the Director, members of the Management Board, the BEREC Office staff and members of their families shall be laid down in a Headquarters Agreement between the BEREC Office and the host Member State, concluded after obtaining the approval of the Management Board and no later than 21 December 2020.
2. The host Member State shall provide the necessary conditions to ensure the smooth and efficient functioning of the BEREC Office, including multilingual, European-oriented schooling and appropriate transport connections.
Evaluation
1. By 21 December 2023, and every five years thereafter, the Commission shall carry out an evaluation in compliance with the Commission guidelines to assess BEREC’s and the BEREC Office’s performance in relation to their objectives, mandate, tasks and location. The evaluation shall, in particular, address the possible need to modify the structure or mandate of BEREC and the BEREC Office, and the financial implications of any such modification.
2. Where the Commission considers that the continuation of BEREC or the BEREC Office is no longer justified with regard to its assigned objectives, mandate and tasks, it may propose that this Regulation be amended or repealed accordingly.
3. The Commission shall report to the European Parliament, the Council and the Management Board on the findings of its evaluation and shall make those findings public.
Transitional Provisions
1. The BEREC Office shall succeed the Office that was established by Regulation (EC) No 1211/2009 as regards all ownership, agreements, legal obligations, employment contracts, financial commitments and liabilities.
In particular, this Regulation shall not affect the rights and obligations of the staff of the Office. Their contracts may be renewed under this Regulation in accordance with the Staff Regulations and the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants and in accordance with the budgetary constraints of the BEREC Office.
2. With effect from 20 December 2018, the Administrative Manager appointed on the basis of Regulation (EC) No 1211/2009 shall act as Director with the functions provided for in this Regulation. The other conditions of the Administrative Manager’s contract shall remain unchanged.
3. The Management Board may decide to renew the term of office of the Director referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article for a further term. Article 32(5) and (6) shall apply mutatis mutandis. The cumulative term of office of the Director shall not exceed 10 years.
4. The Board of Regulators and the Management Board referred to in Articles 7 and 15 of this Regulation shall be composed of the members of the Board of Regulators and Management Committee referred to in Articles 4 and 7 of Regulation (EC) No 1211/2009, until new representatives are appointed.
5. The Chairs and the Vice-Chairs of the Board of Regulators and of the Management Committee who have been appointed on the basis of Regulation (EC) No 1211/2009, shall remain in office as Chair and Vice-Chairs of the Board of Regulators as referred to in Article 10 of this Regulation, and as Chairperson and Deputy Chairpersons of the Management Board as referred to in Article 17 of this Regulation for the remaining period of their one-year term. Appointments of the Chairs and Vice-Chairs of the Board of Regulators and of the Management Committee on the basis of Regulation (EC) No 1211/2009, which are made before 20 December 2018 but extend beyond that date, shall be respected.
6. The discharge procedure in respect of the budget approved on the basis of Article 11 of Regulation (EC) No 1211/2009 shall be carried out in accordance with the rules established by that Regulation.
Amendments to Regulation (EU) 2015/2120
Regulation (EU) 2015/2120 is amended as follows:
(1)
the title is replaced by the following:
‘Regulation (EU) 2015/2120 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 November 2015 laying down measures concerning open internet access and retail charges for regulated intra-EU communications and amending Directive 2002/22/EC and Regulation (EU) No 531/2012’;
(2)
in Article 1, the following paragraph is added:
‘3. This Regulation also lays down common rules to ensure that consumers are not charged excessive prices for making number-based interpersonal communications originating in the Member State of the consumer’s domestic provider and terminating at any fixed or mobile number in another Member State.’;
(3)
in the second paragraph of Article 2, the following points are added:
‘(3) “regulated intra-EU communications” means any number-based interpersonal communications service originating in the Member State of the consumer’s domestic provider and terminating at any fixed or mobile number of the national numbering plan of another Member State, and which is charged wholly or partly based on actual consumption;
(4) “number-based interpersonal communications service” means number-based interpersonal communications service as defined in point (6) of Article 2 of Directive (EU) 2018/1972 of the European Parliament and of the Council ( *1 ) .
( *1 ) Directive (EU) 2018/1972 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2018 establishing the European Electronic Communications Code ( OJ L 321, 17.12.2018, p. 36 ).’;"
(4)
the following Article is inserted:
‘Article 5a
Retail charges for regulated intra-EU communications
1. From 15 May 2019, any retail price (excluding VAT) charged to consumers for regulated intra-EU communications shall not exceed EUR 0,19 per minute for calls and EUR 0,06 per SMS message.
2. Notwithstanding the obligations laid down in paragraph 1, providers of regulated intra-EU communications may additionally offer, and consumers may expressly choose, a tariff for international communications including regulated intra-EU communications different from that set in accordance with paragraph 1, by virtue of which consumers benefit from a different tariff for regulated intra-EU communications than they would have been accorded in the absence of such a choice. Before consumers choose such a different tariff, the provider of regulated intra-EU communications shall inform them of the nature of the advantages which would thereby be lost.
3. Where a tariff for regulated intra-EU communications as referred to in paragraph 2 exceeds the caps laid down in paragraph 1, consumers who have not confirmed or expressed, within a period of two months from 15 May 2019, a choice for any tariff as referred to in paragraph 2, shall automatically be provided with the tariffs laid down in paragraph 1.
4. Consumers may switch from or back to the tariffs laid down in paragraph 1 within one working day of receipt of the request by the provider, free of charge and providers shall ensure that such a switch does not entail conditions or restrictions with regard to elements of the subscriptions other than regulated intra-EU communications.
5. Where the maximum prices referred to in paragraph 1 are denominated in a currency other than the euro, the initial limits shall be determined in those currencies by applying the average of the reference exchange rates published on 15 January, 15 February and 15 March 2019 by the European Central Bank in the Official Journal of the European Union. The limits in currencies other than the euro shall be revised annually from 2020. The annually revised limits in those currencies shall apply from 15 May using the average of the reference exchange rates published on 15 January, 15 February and 15 March of the same year.
6. National regulatory authorities shall monitor the market and price developments for regulated intra-EU communications and shall report to the Commission.
Where a provider of regulated intra-EU communications establishes that, due to specific and exceptional circumstances distinguishing it from most other Union providers, the application of the cap referred to in paragraph 1 would have significant impact on that provider’s capacity to sustain its existing prices for domestic communications, a national regulatory authority may, upon that provider’s request, grant a derogation from paragraph 1 only to the extent necessary and for a renewable period of one year. The assessment of the sustainability of the domestic charging model shall be based on relevant objective factors specific to the provider of regulated intra-EU communications, as well as the level of domestic prices and revenues.
Where the applicant provider has discharged the applicable evidentiary burden, the national regulatory authority shall determine the maximum price level in excess of one or both of the caps set out in paragraph 1 which would be indispensable in order to ensure the sustainability of the provider’s domestic charging model. BEREC shall publish guidelines on the parameters to be taken into account by national regulatory authorities in their assessments.’;
(5)
in Article 6, the following paragraph is added:
‘Member States shall lay down the rules on penalties applicable to infringements of Article 5a and shall take all measures necessary to ensure that they are implemented. The penalties provided for shall be effective, proportionate and dissuasive. Member States shall notify the Commission of the rules and measures laid down to ensure the implementation of Article 5a by 15 May 2019 and shall notify the Commission without delay of any subsequent amendment affecting them.’;
(6)
in Article 10, the following paragraph is added:
‘5. Article 5a shall expire on 14 May 2024.’.
Repeal
Regulation (EC) No 1211/2009 is repealed.
References to the repealed Regulation shall be construed as references to this Regulation and shall be read in accordance with the correlation table in the Annex.
Entry into force
This Regulation shall enter into force on the third day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.
Source: EUR-Lex (Publications Office of the EU), © European Union, reuse permitted under Commission Decision 2011/833/EU.
