The the Communications, Space, and Technology Commission the transportation and communications sector to submit comments and observations on “Regulations Governing the Establishment andprovision of telecommunications services in real estate” during the period from September 4 to October 3, 2024. This project aims to enhance the digital infrastructure in properties and facilities and provide high-quality, cost-effective telecommunications services, thereby promoting competition and offering users a variety of options.
These regulations represent an important step toward improving the quality of telecommunications services in real estate and strengthening digital infrastructure in line with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030. This initiative enables smart cities and buildings and fosters better integration between developers and service providers, thereby contributing to a superior user experience for beneficiaries.
Smart and Sustainable Infrastructure
Through these regulations, the Authority seeks to establish standards to minimize civil engineering works and reduce their environmental and social impacts, as well as regulating the rights and obligations of land and facility developers and telecommunications service providers, and enabling smart cities and buildings through the provision of advanced digital solutions.
Key Infrastructure Requirements
The draft included several requirements, including the need for infrastructure within a property to be standardized and shared among all service providers, with the use of tools to measure service providers" compliance in accordance with standards set by the Authority. This document will also be reviewed periodically to ensure its alignment with technical and environmental requirements. The draft emphasizes that ownership of base stations for indoor coverage solutions must belong to an authorized service provider.
Proactive Planning and Economic Responsibility
The regulations impose several responsibilities on developers, including identifying telecommunications needs during the planning stages and enabling service providers to complete their work before the property becomes operational. Developers must also submit service requests at least 180 days before the property becomes operational and sign a written agreement with a hosting service provider to organize the provision of telecommunications services within the property.
Service Provider Obligations
The draft requires service providers to provide channels for submitting requests for telecommunications services, such as fiber optics and in-building coverage solutions, and to respond to developers" requests within 45 days. The host service provider is also required to provide the developer with all service details, financial terms, and an implementation schedule within 30 days of receiving the request, while publishing a list of qualified engineering firms and contractors on its website and updating it periodically.
Guidelines on Infrastructure Use
The draft emphasizes the need to use infrastructure efficiently and to install devices and equipment that support the latest technologies. It also requires service providers to negotiate in good faith and conclude partnership agreements within 60 days of a request by either party, while committing to avoid agreements based on revenue sharing from telecommunications services with developers.
Promoting Competition and Protecting Consumer Rights
The regulations prohibit exclusive agreements between the hosting service provider and the developer, and prohibit the hosting service provider from charging the guest service provider any unjustified additional fees. Furthermore, the financial compensation for providing services must be commensurate with the available technical specifications, and the provision of any services in properties that do not meet the specified requirements is prohibited.
