China continues to impose ‘major’ barriers to U.S. carriers that ...

USTR to work closely with China to create regulatory body separate from any basic telecom supplier: “Given that the Chinese government owns and controls all of the major operators in the telecommunications industry, it is impossible for China to establish a regulator that is truly independent.” USCIB said China’s “overly narrow” interpretation of market access opportunities for foreign carriers and lack of independent regulator had “negatively impacted market opportunities for U.S. telecommunications companies contrary to China’s WTO commitments.” USCIB said countries such as Canada, France, Germany, Japan and Mexico also imposed barriers to U.S. carriers violating their WTO obligations. It said Canadian Radio-TV & Telecom Commission (CRTC) failed to ensure that independent ISPs have access to cable networks on reasonable terms and conditions that would drive them from market, allowing dominant cable operators to preserve their dominant position preventing fair competition. European Union (EU) enforcement of its rules regarding telecom services has been “far from uniform” that negatively affects investment through this area, USCIB said. It said EU demonstrated its inability to secure compliance in long term. It said while some member states had been taken to European Court for failure to implement those rules, that process could take up to 4 years. Those problems are particularly evident in France, Belgium and Germany, USCIB said. It said with exception of U.K. and Ireland, there was no effective regime in place to ensure WTO obligations on cost orientated pricing for interconnection and nondiscrimination could be met. USCIB said USTR should monitor very closely any progress within EU and “maintain appropriate pressure” on its national authorities. Germany also clearly violates its WTO compliance, USCIB said. It said RegTP was incapable of enforcing its rulings in timely and effective manner. It said German regulator lacked basic tools, such as ability to impose fines for violations of its orders. Moreover, it said, German law doesn’t give competitors opportunity to examine evidence presented by Deutsche Telekom (DT) to RegTP to justify telecom rates. USCIB said RegTP should be granted statutory authority to implement and enforce Germany’s trade commitments. It also said German courts should have statutory authority to hear appeals in timely manner and to enforce country’s trade commitments. USCIB said Mexico failed to implement its WTO obligations, which “if fully implemented, would allow effective competition to flourish.”