Poland amends telecom law to fit EU standards

President Bronislaw Komorowski has signed an amendment to Poland’s Telecommunications Law adjusting the legislation in line with European Union (EU) norms. The amendments are intended to extend the powers of subscribers, increase competition and strengthen the protection of personal data. Amongst the changes are a compulsion for providers to inform customers if they exceed their data usage limit, obligations to provide a clear and accessible breakdown of tariff and charges and a reduction in contract tie-in length to two years, whilst contracts of less than a year will also be made available. Further, the maximum length of time a company can retain a user’s data will be reduced to twelve months, from its current 24 months. The amendments will come into force 30 days after their publication in the Official Gazette and will be in place before the end of January 2013.