Regulatory roundup: New Peru telecom law, Chilean cabling regulation and more

New Peruvian telecom law

Peru's transport and communications ministry (MTC) has created a multi-sector working group to advance with an update of the telecommunications law.

The group will include representatives of the MTC, telecommunications program Pronatel and sector regulator Osiptel. Academics, the private sector, civil society and other experts in the field will also be invited to take part in the discussions.

The current telecommunications law was enacted in 1991. The new proposal will seek to integrate recent technological changes and respond to the growing needs of an increasingly connected society, the MTC said in a statement.

Chile cabling regulation

Chilean regulator Subtel has submitted regulations to the comptroller general for a law that covers the use of cabling and establishes the removal of overhead and underground lines, including ducts and control boxes.

The law, passed five years ago, has yet to be implemented due to a lack of regulation.

The 18-page document sets out conditions and requirements regarding the installation and identification of both overhead and underground lines, local newspaper La Tercera reported.

Recently, the association Chile Telcos argued that the regulations contain elements that need to be analyzed more thoroughly because they could be detrimental to the development of telecommunications infrastructure.

VTR compensation 

Chilean telecom company VTR has agreed to begin a procedure with consumer service Sernac to resolve complaints regarding interruptions, intermittence and quality problems in its telecommunications services.

The plan is to reach agreement on appropriate compensation for affected customers. Sernac has recorded thousands of complaints from VTR consumers since August 1.

Public consultation

Colombian regulator CRC has published for comment a consultation document that defines the problems to be solved in the definition of regulatory conditions for provision of fixed community internet services.

The document is part of the initial phase of the regulatory impact analysis and will be open for comment until September 17.

The text can be seen here.

Colombian AI bills

Colombia's congress created a commission to coordinate, articulate and review the various bills that are being discussed regarding the regulation of artificial intelligence (AI).

The commission will have to unify criteria and build consensuses on the nine bills currently being processed in congress.

Indotel appointment

Dominican President Luis Abinader appointed Guido Gómez Mazara as chairman of the board of regulator Indotel, replacing Nelson Arroyo.

The new Indotel president is a prominent lawyer, politician, professor and communicator.  

Indotel's general manager, Julissa Cruz, was confirmed in her position.

Dominican consumer rights

Dominican lawmaker Sadoky Duarte has introduced a bill to prohibit internet service cuts due to late payment of fees, as well as to eliminate payments for the reconnection of services.

The initiative, which will begin the legislative process once the committees are formed, also establishes that minutes, data and other plans not used in the month can be passed forward to the following month, local paper Diario Libre reported.

Jamaican providers not charging after hurricane

Service providers Digicel and Flow have announced that customers will not be charged usage fees for the period of disrupted services since Hurricane Beryl in July, regulator OUR reported.

Flow also said that consumers who have had service interruptions lasting more than 72 hours will automatically receive a refund. Digicel also said it will provide refunds to those users with outages, depending on the number of days they were without services.

Peru looking to block mobile device charges 

Peru’s congress is debating a bill that prohibits operators from establishing penalties or additional charges for the purchase of mobile equipment (cell phones).

According to the bill, these types of abusive practices have created barriers for Peruvian consumers to access telecommunications services.

Peruvian importers must register devices

Peruvian regulator Osiptel said that import companies must continue to register mobile terminal equipment entering the country on the Renteseg list of validated equipment.

Although the interior ministry and Osiptel announced the temporary suspension of the blocks of equipment for not being registered on the white list, importers are still obliged to register the devices that enter the country.

According to Osiptel, import companies that have complied with the registration process account for 99.8% of the devices legally imported between June 2023 and August 22, 2024.

Paraguay e-government

Paraguay's ICT ministry has established new guidelines for e-government that all state agencies and entities in the country must comply with.

The document aims to optimize processes and ensure greater efficiency and transparency.

The guidelines cover a wide range of topics, from electronic identity and online payments to document management and digital citizen participation.

The full document can be seen here.