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UK avoids EC legal action on broadband regulations
The UK and six other countries have fulfilled the European Commission's new telecoms rules.
According to the EC, only the UK, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Ireland, Malta and Sweden have notified the administration to say the regulations have been adopted in full, meaning 20 countries have failed to hit the deadline of May 25th 2011.
As a result, commissioners have now begun legal proceedings against nations that missed the target, with those that failed to comply including Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain.
Under the new guidelines, businesses and consumers are given rights such as the ability to move from one mobile provider to another in a single day without having to change their number.
Broadband customers have been offered more clarity about the services they sign up for, while pledges have also had to be fulfilled relating to the safeguarding of confidential information online.
All countries that failed to notify the EC that the rules have been implemented have now been sent letters of formal notice requesting information on the matter. Responses to these letters must be made within two months.
"If they fail to reply or if it is not satisfied with the answer, the Commission can send the member states concerned a formal request to implement the legislation (in the form of a 'reasoned opinion' under EU infringement procedures) and ultimately refer them to the Court of Justice of the European Union," the EC explained.
The news comes just days after the administration's latest Eurobarometer survey found one in four people are concerned that their broadband speeds do not tally with the terms of the contract they originally signed up to.
UK households were found to be the most dissatisfied in Europe when it comes to broadband services, with 37 per cent claiming their connection does not match up to the conditions they committed to.