It's All Change Again For Communications Providers

• Published date: 13 May 2022
• Subject Matter: Corporate/Commercial Law, Media, Telecoms, IT, Entertainment, Charities & Non-Profits , Corporate and Company Law, Contracts and Commercial Law, Mobile & Cable Communications
• Law Firm: LCF Law
• Author: Mr James Sarjantson

Providers of communications services including business telecoms, broadband, mobile, pay TV and landline services, must prepare for a second wave of key rule changes from Ofcom, warns James Sarjantson, digital, telecoms and commercial partner. These rules will require further significant changes to the way telecoms providers offer their services and will mean changing their contracts with customers.

Background

The 2018 European Electronic Communications Code (EECC) updated the EU regulatory framework for communications services. Although the UK has now left the EU, under the terms of the EU Withdrawal Agreement, the UK still had an obligation to implement this EU directive into domestic law.

The EECC contained a package of measures designed to protect customers of communications services, and to ensure that customers can shop around with confidence and make informed choices. Ofcom, the UK communications regulator, has been implementing the new EECC protections through changes to the General Conditions of Entitlement, which are the regulatory rules that communications providers must comply with when providing services in the UK.

Most of the changes to the General Conditions came into effect on 17 December 2021, after the original deadline of December 2020 was put back due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Communications providers that haven't yet updated their practices and contract terms to reflect those changes must do so urgently to avoid enforcement action by Ofcom.

Further new rules will come into effect on 17 June 2022, relating to various points including the provision of contract information, and extended customer rights to exit.

Changes to the rules relating to switching and porting will then come into effect on 3 April 2023.

New rules from 17 December 2021

New definitions were introduced into the General Conditions for micro enterprise and small enterprise customers and not-for-profit customers. Essentially these are small businesses or not-for-profit entities with 10 employees or less and they now have many of the same protections under the General Conditions as consumers do. As such, the distinction between business communications providers and residential or consumer communications providers is now much more complicated and requires business providers to look closely at their contract terms and in most cases update them.

Other changes to the General Conditions that came into effect in December 2021 include:

• A two-year maximum commitment period, or...