Romania may face action from the EC for allegedly interfering in the independence of its telecom regulator.
According to ZF, Viviane Reding, the European Commissioner for Information Society and Media, will later this week propose that the Commission takes action against the country for directly influencing a market worth some €4 billion.
Last August saw the controversial dismissal of Dan Georgescu, the president of the ANRTCI regulatory authority. The government then decided to restructure the ANRTCI by emergency ordinance, creating a new body known as the National Authority for Communications (ANC) and appointing the media entrepreneur and politician Liviu Nistoran as its head.
The expected EC move comes at a time when Romania’s new government is itself planning changes to the regulatory structure that may include breaking up the ANC.
The ANC is currently playing a key role in Romania’s plans to launch a DTT service sometime next year.