The European Commission has adopted new rules to make it easier for passengers and crew on ships in the EU's territorial waters to make mobile phone calls or send and receive text messages when they are out of range of land-based mobile phone networks. The new rules harmonise the technical and legal conditions for on-board communication services and pave the way for innovative applications, such as remote monitoring of containers stored on-board. This brings new legal certainty and economic opportunities, for service providers who want to offer seamless maritime mobile connectivity across borders.
“Tens of millions of people who travel and work on ships anywhere in European territorial waters will be able to use their mobile phones without problems of interference as a result of the new rules just adopted by the Commission, says EU Digital Agenda Commissioner, Neelie Kroes.
The Commission says the new rules should put an end to the previous patchwork of 27 different sets of national legislation on mobile phone coverage on-board cruise liners, cargo ships and ferries in European territorial waters. The rules create legal certainty for telecoms operators that wish to offer maritime mobile services to their customers.
On-board mobile communication services operate through small (pico-cell) on-board base stations which connect sea travellers' phones to land-based network equipment via satellite. The on-board services ensure the connectivity of users via telecommunications networks by a normal mobile phone.
A Decision just adopted by the Commission guarantees the availability of 900 MHz and/or 1800 MHz GSM radio frequencies for on-board communication services under harmonised technical and operational conditions. It also ensures that on-board mobile services do not interfere with land-based ones, so that mobile users on the coast are not inadvertently connected to on-board systems.
At the same time, the Commission has adopted a Recommendation that EU countries liberalise their authorisation regimes in a way that any on-board services operator authorised in one country can provide services in the territorial waters of other EU countries without the need for further licences.
Together, these two measures will make it easier for passengers and ships' crews to stay in touch with family and friends via their own mobile phones while at sea. The continuous maritime connectivity will also enable the real-time monitoring of transported goods thanks to remote sensors. For instance, a containers temperature and humidity can be monitored from a distance so that the quality of merchandise stored on ships can be controlled at any time.
EU Member States have 12 months to make room for mobile communication services on ships in the radio spectrum bands concerned, and to adjust their national laws to comply with the Decision. Member States also need to ensure that consumers are adequately informed about the terms and conditions for the use of mobile communication services on ships.