Consumer Protection and Premium Rate Services In Denmark

The regulation of the telecommunication industry in Denmark is quite liberal. There are no requirements to register with national authorities when providing telecommunication services or Premium Rate Services. Only Network Operators, who want to make use of the scarce frequency resources, must register with the National IT and Telecom Agency. This liberal approach may be a contributory factor to the fact that there are no official statistics on Premium Rate Services available from public authorities. This article is structured into five parts concerning 1) Premium Rate Services in Denmark, 2) relevant actors, 3) regulation concerning Network Operators, 4) regulation concerning Content Providers, and 5) telecommunication services that are not Premium Rate Services. The proposed structure has been departed to reflect the general division of regulation concerning the Network Operator and the Content Provider, respectively. The areas covered, reflects the regulation that is relevant to those Premium Rate Services provided in Denmark. The emphasis of the article is laid on the regulation safeguarding consumers in the context of Premium Rate Services. This regulation may be grouped into regulation that:sets requirements for carrying out business as Network Operator or Content Provider, concerns which Premium Rate Service may be provided, and under which number-series or applications codes, imposes certain information requirements, ensures fair and truthful marketing of the Premium Rate Services, or allows the User to monitor his bill, limit his usage, or limits the liability in connection to unauthorised usage.Infringement of the legislation in question is mainly sanctioned by administrative or civil sanctions. The overall impression is that the Danish telecommunication industry is quite active in securing compliance with the law.