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OPEN SOURCE ALREADY IN ARMENIA Below is an interview given by Director of Open Source Armenia Armen Shahverdyan to the ARMINFO News Agency.

IT IS TIME FOR ELABORATING A CONCEPT OF IT DEVELOPMENT IN ARMENIA
Below is an interview given by Director of the "Information Technologies Fund" Organization Garegin Chaguszian to the ARMINFO News Agency.

NEW LAW ON E-COMS IS REVOLUTIONARY FOR COMMUNICATION SPHERE DEVELOPMENT IN ARMENIA

A rare internet user in Armenia will say that he is satisfied with the quality and the price of communication in the country not to mention the fact that the "Armenian" internet creates numerous problems for local IT work and development. The two main reasons are obvious: the monopoly of the ArmenTel telecom company and the "young," yet unfledged Armenian legislation. Recently the Armenian Parliament approved the first reading of an e-coms bill, a document drafted by the Armenian Government with the support of the Econ One Research international consultative company. Armenia's Justice Minister David Haroutyunyan says that the bill contains drastically new approaches to the regulation of the communication sphere, the latter's development being prerequisite for the formation of the Armenian IT. ARMINFO's correspondent Ruben Grdzeljan has asked Haroutyunyan for clarifications.

Q: Mr Minister, what is the objective of the adoption of a new law on communication?

A: The actual law on telecoms was adopted by the Parliament after ArmenTel's privatization and was tailored to the company's 15-year monopoly in the sphere. In the new law we seek to gradually transit to a competitive market and to outline the key directions of the Government's policy for e-coms regulation to be implemented by the Commission for Regulation of Public Services.

Q: Why is the law called "On Electronic Communications" while the name of the relevant UN body is International Telecommunications Union and the generally accepted term is "telecommunications"?

A: The point is that in 1999 Armenia signed an international agreement and pledged to harmonize its laws with the European legislation, which calls the sphere "electronic communications."

Q: What questions does the bill regulate?

A: One of the basic provisions of the bill is delimitation of the authority of the Government and the independent Commission for Regulation of Public Services. The second direction is coordination of e-networks and the sphere of e-services. I would like to note that these points refer only to entities providing public services. These are not just legal persons enjoying monopoly on various e-coms but the companies holding over 30 % of the market. The bill does not cover tele-, radio-communications and private networks providing public services.

The bill has a separate article regulating e-coms licensing. It consists mostly of specific amendments to the principal licensing law. Here we deal with a limited resource. Limited in Armenia are, for example, the markets of radio frequencies and satellite channels. In these spheres it is more expedient to apply the principle of competition, which can be encouraged by gradual "opening" of the market and limited issuance of licenses. The article stipulates that no monopoly rights should be conferred on any type of e-services. ArmenTel's license N60 is commented on separately.

The other significant detail is the requirements for obligatory connection of the networks of different operators. All technical standards of a network should be considered when connecting two operators, i.e., an operator can refuse to be connected to a counterpart with a poor quality network. Possible disputes should be settled in court or by a special independent regulator. The document also stipulates that all data transfer operators should be connected to one another, which is a revolutionary decision for a transitional economy like Armenia. The co-financing and other terms of such a connection are prescribed by the law.

Q: Does the bill regulate the Government's legal relations with operators in case of emergency?

A: The bill says that in case of emergency or war the Government reserves the right to use any types of networks or to manage e-services irrespective of the forms of their ownership. Besides, the Government is authorized to represent the sphere on the international arena.

Q: Mr. Minister, it is known that the internet tariffs in Armenia are unjustifiably high. Will the adoption of the bill influence their amount in any way?

A: The internet fee like any other communication tariffs must be close to but never lower than the cost value so that operators can effectively work and develop. The bill envisages formation of a universal service fund, which is supposed to provide citizens all over the country with equal opportunities to use the internet, mobile and fixed phone communication. Any communication operator will have to transfer to the fund a certain share of its turnover, its amount being the same for all operators irrespective of their turnovers. The Commission will use its discretion in allocating the money to operators with low profits.

12 April, 2004, Ruben Grdzelian, Arminfo