CHANNEL REPORT Brexit
“Brexit can be a problem if you want it to be, but if you are confident in your product and can deliver a true
e ICO adds however
that you may need to ensure
adequate safeguards are in place
to maintain any data ows from
the European Economic Area
(EEA), which includes the EU.
If you operate in the EEA,
you may need to comply with
both the UK data protection
regime and the EU regime
after the UK exits the EU.
You may also need to appoint
a representative in the EEA.
ere is more information
below about whether this
applies to you.
General Legislative Framework
In an attempt to create a
‘Digital Single Market’, the
EU has introduced legislation
covering xed and wireless
telecoms, internet services,
broadcasting and transmission
services. at legislative
framework covers transmission
systems which permit the
conveyance of signals by
wire, by radio, by optical
or by other electromagnetic
means, including satellite
networks, xed and mobile
terrestrial networks,
electricity cable systems,
networks used for radio and
television broadcasting and
cable television networks,
irrespective of the type of
information conveyed. e
element introduced most
recently is the Directive on
the European Electronic
Communications Code,
adopted by the EU institutions
in December 2018.
Under the European Union
(Withdrawal) Act 2018, UK
legislation implementing the
EU legislative framework will
remain in place until such time
as the UK deems it appropriate
to make amendments. Looking
ahead, there will no doubt be
diculties in complying with
some of the requirements of
this UK legislation without
the infrastructure and internal
agreements of the EU. is
will largely depend on the
trading relationship agreed
between the UK and the EU27
after Brexit.
cloud solution then you simply need the balls to challenge the status quo. “
Telecoms Regulation
e Communications Act 2003
(Communications Act) is the
main Act of Parliament which
implements various parts of
relevant EU Directives and sets
out the duties and obligations
of Ofcom, the UK’s national
regulatory authority. rough
the Communications Act, the
UK has implemented ‘General
Conditions’, ‘Signicant
Market Power Conditions’ and
‘Universal Service Conditions
for the regulation of telecoms
companies and Ofcom has
general obligations to promote
competition, develop the internal
market in the EU and promote
the interests of European citizens.
With Brexit, whilst the
principles of encouraging
competition and promoting
consumer rights will remain,
Iain Sinnott, Head of Sales at VanillaIP
PEOPLE ASK…
WHAT IS THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AREA (EEA)
The EEA includes EU countries and also Iceland, Liechtenstein and
Norway. It allows them to be part of the EU’s single market.
Switzerland is neither an EU nor EEA member but is part of the single
market - this means Swiss nationals have the same rights to live and
work in the UK as other EEA nationals.
there will undoubtedly be a
shift in focus and corresponding
changes to the regulatory
environment to promote the
interests of the UK market
and UK citizens, which could
include changes to the telecoms
authorisation regime and
associated conditions for UK
operators. is would lead to UK
telecoms regulation diverging
from EU telecoms regulation
over time.
e Information
Commissioners Oce (ICO)
has produced some further
useful information regarding
Brexit which it tries to keep up
to date on their web site.
e sections on
Infrastructure, Roaming, Net
Neutrality, Competition and
E-Commerce are worth keeping
an eye on.
ED SAYS…
At the time of writing the Prime Minister has just tried to suspend Parliament for
five weeks to get his Brexit plan in order away from parliamentary scrutiny. Will
the UK leave the EU on 31 October or will the process be again delayed is anyones
guess. At some point there will be another General Election when the mainstream
media will once again track down ‘Brenda of Bristol’ for her reaction and we can all
look forward to another hung parliament. And so it goes on.
40 | Comms Business Magazine | October 2019 www.commsbusiness.co.uk
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