Paris court of Appeal confirms that ART has the jurisdiction to settle disputes between telecommunications operators

Paris, 28 April 1998

In April 1997, the French Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (ART) was called upon by Paris TV Câble and by Compagnie Générale de Vidéocommunication to settle disputes that had arisen between themselves and France Télécom. The disputes concerned the technical conditions and prices imposed for allowing Internet access over cable TV networks. ART determined the terms of the dispute settlement in two decisions issued on 10 July 1997. France Télécom appealed to the Paris Court of Appeal against these decisions. The Appeal Court issued two orders on 28 April, totally rejecting the appeals.

The orders issued by the Appeal Court state and confirm that ART is empowered, by law, to settle disputes between operators. They thus confirm ART's regulatory mission to develop the market fairly and to respond to consumers' needs.

The arrangements for reaching the commercial agreements and the corresponding work schedule set by ART have been validated by the Appeal Court - so the public operator can now proceed to effectively implement the decisions taken by ART nearly one year ago, with no reason for further delay.

Text of decisions of the Appeal Court :

- by Paris TV Câble

Linked documents

• Paris TV Câble (pdf - 131 Ko)
 • Compagnie générale de vidéo communication (pdf - 141 Ko)