The Chilean Senate has approved 33 – 0 new regulations on mobile phone antenna installations (read the document in Spanish). This agreement is expected to be ratified in the coming weeks by the National Congress, and soon to be enacted into the law.
The bill on telecommunications antennas has been in discussion for a decade, according to Chile’s telecom authority Subtel, and now is in its third stage of consideration having passed through the lower house of congress (House of Representatives) and the Senate. It was approved late last year in a joint committee of representatives and senators where outstanding matters were resolved.
RCR Wireless News interviewed some key telecom players to understand the pros and cons of this bill. Many agreed that the bill promotes improvements in reducing the visual impact of antennas in urban environments and encourages collocation, but also said it might significantly increase the cost of building towers.
Chilean mobile telephone association Atelmo noted it is essential to have mutual cooperation, which would simultaneously meet two needs: enable connectivity and minimize the impact of telecommunications infrastructure in urban space development.
The carrier association said that throughout the legislative debate, it pushed for a greater role to be given to the municipalities and that companies should interact with the community in order to generate improvements in the public space. Thus, Atelmo expects to better respond to the concerns of neighbors to mitigate the visual impact of telecom structures and allow them to have a say on the improvements in their immediate environment.
Juan Gnius, VP at Signals Telecom Consulting, noted that the new law imposes rules to protect the environment, visual pollution of the antennas and healthcare by imposing a minimum distance antennas can be installed near health centers and educational establishments.
The regulations also provides for some monetary guidelines for communities.
“The bill gives community participation to enable the installation of antennas, opening places to receive compensation for the installation of towers,” Gnius noted. “You can apply for tax rebates to property owners near antennas as a result of a tax revaluation.”
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The regulations include where towers and antennas can be placed and and restrictions on tower height. One of Atelmo’s concerns is related to where infrastructures can be built, since the new regulations prohibit constructing new structures in certain areas or the removal of existing towers, which could create problems for coverage and quality of service provided.
“To find solution to these problems or reduce their effects it is required an efficient and timely coordination with Subtel and municipalities,” Atelmo noted.
Indeed, others telecoms players emphasized that it is necessary to maintain at least 18-meter (nearly 60 feet) towers, and when it comes to 4G deployment 18 meters would be a minimum height to guarantee quality services.
The new bill also impacts new operators as it requires collocation of new antennas. However, this could be a challenge from the incumbents point of view as the amount they can charge to new entrants may not recover the investment made to support the site, said Signal’s Gnius.
Gnius also noted that the law is retroactive, forcing incumbents to move, modify and or replace antennas that are not in compliance. “This means an additional investments that could be used, for example, to further coverage or launch new services,” added Gnius.
However, the collocation requirement could be good news for infrastructure companies.
The new law allows for communities to choose whether they prefer a camouflaged tower that reduces the visual impact of the site or accept a standard tower structure that includes an obligation by the tower builder to compensate the community for up to 30% of the value of the tower. This would increase the cost to build traditional towers, though telecom players are still trying to figure out of the 30% requirement also includes network equipment placed on that tower.
As for the collocation aspects of the law, those carriers that choose to not partner with other operators would be forced to pay the equivalent of 50% of the replacement value of the tower, 20% if the tower is camouflaged.
Atelmo said the mobile industry is working hard to be in compliance with the new law, as it has done in recent years with the implementation of all regulatory changes.
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