Paris, 27 June 1998
The French Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (ART) is satisfied with the decree issued yesterday evening by the Conseil d'Etat, on the matter of carrier selection prefixes.
This decree confirms that ART is entrusted, by law, with the task of establishing the national numbering plan, and setting out the regulatory provisions necessary to manage the plan.
It also admits the legality of the mechanism put in place by ART for long distance carrier selection. It recognises, in particular, that there is no undue discrimination in making the distinction between one-digit "E" prefixes and four-digit "16XY" prefixes, as the obligations imposed on operators for the use of "E" and "16XY" prefixes are different. Furthermore, it underlines that the use of the "E" prefix is justified, as it enables subscribers to access new operators by using numbers of the same length as those used to access France Télécom.
In this decree the Conseil d'Etat usefully specifies the scope of ART's jurisdiction. It thereby confirms ART's role, as was done by the Paris Court of Appeal in its decision on the dispute over the provision of Internet access via cable networks, on 28 April 19
| Press Contact: Jean-François HERNANDEZ tel : 33 1 40 47 70 33 - fax : 33 1 40 47 71 98 email : Jean-Francois.Hernandez@art-telecom.fr |