2.—(1) In this Act, except where the context otherwise requires—

“Act of 1972” means European Communities Act, 1972;

“Act of 1996” means Telecommunications (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1996;

F1[“Agency” means the National Consumer Agency established by the Consumer Protection Act 2007;]

F2[“associate”, in relation to an undertaking, means—

(a) a holding company of the undertaking, or

(b) a subsidiary company of the undertaking, or

(c) a company that is a subsidiary of a body corporate, if the undertaking is also a subsidiary of the body, but neither company is a subsidiary of the other, or

(d) a body corporate that is not a subsidiary of the undertaking but in respect of which the undertaking is beneficially entitled to more than 20 per cent of the nominal value of either—

(i) the allotted share capital of the body, or

(ii) the shares carrying voting rights (other than voting rights which arise only in specified circumstances) of the body,

or

(e) a partnership or joint venture in which the undertaking has a financial interest;]

F3["associated facilities" means associated services, physical infrastructures and other facilities or elements associated with an electronic communications network or an electronic communications service which enable or support the provision of services via that network or service, or have the potential to do so, and include buildings or entries to buildings, building wiring, antennae, towers and other supporting constructions, ducts, conduits, masts, manholes, and cabinets;]

F4["associated service" means a service associated with an electronic communications network or an electronic communications service which enables or supports the provision, self-provision or automated-provision of services via that network or service, or has the potential to do so, and includes number translation or systems offering equivalent functionality, conditional access systems and electronic programme guides (EPGs), as well as other services such as identity, location and presence service;]

F2[“association of undertakings” a body corporate that comprises one or more undertakings but is not itself an undertaking;]

“Civil Service” has the meaning assigned to it by the Civil Service Regulation Act, 1956;

“Commission” means the Commission for Communications Regulation established by Part 2;

“Commissioner” means a member of the Commission;

“Community” means European Communities;

F5[“conditional access systems” means any technical measure, authentication system or arrangement or both whereby access to a protected radio or television broadcasting service in intelligible form is made conditional upon subscription or another form of prior individual authorisation;]

“Director” means the Director of Telecommunications Regulation appointed under the Act of 1996 and, where the context so admits, includes the Office of the Director of Telecommunications Regulation;

F6["Electronic Communications Code Regulations" means European Union (Electronic Communications Code) Regulations 2022 (S.I. No. 444 of 2022);]

“electronic communications market” means electronic communications networks, electronic communications services and associated facilities;

F3["electronic communications network" means transmission systems, whether or not based on a permanent infrastructure or centralised administration capacity, and, where applicable, switching or routing equipment and other resources, including network elements which are not active, which permit the conveyance of signals by wire, radio, optical or other electromagnetic means, including satellite networks, fixed (circuit-and packet-switched, including internet) and mobile networks, electricity cable systems, to the extent that they are used for the purpose of transmitting signals, networks used for radio and television broadcasting, and cable television networks, irrespective of the type of information conveyed;]

F3["electronic communications service" means a service normally provided for remuneration via electronic communications networks, which encompasses, with the exception of services providing, or exercising editorial control over, content transmitted using electronic communications networks and services, the following types of services:

(a) "internet access service" as defined in point (2) of the second paragraph of Article 2 of Regulation (EU) 2015/2120 of 25 November 2015⁷,

(b) interpersonal communications service, and

(c) services consisting wholly or mainly in the conveyance of signals such as transmission services used for the provision of machine to machine services and for broadcasting]

F3["end-user" means a user not providing public electronic communications network or publicly available electronic communications services;]

F4["end-user of premium rate services" means a person to whom such a service is supplied, or who has asked for the supply of such a service otherwise than for the purpose of resupply;]

“essential requirements” has the meaning assigned to it by Article 2 of Directive 97/13/EC of 10 April 1997³;

“establishment day” means the day appointed under section 4 to be the establishment day for the purposes of this Act;

F2[“failure to comply” includes contravene;

“financial year”, in relation to the Commission, means the financial year of the Commission as specified in or in accordance with section 31A;]

F4["interpersonal communications service" means a service normally provided for remuneration that enables direct interpersonal and interactive exchange of information via electronic communications networks between a finite number of persons, whereby the persons initiating or participating in the communication determine its recipient and does not include services which enable interpersonal and interactive communication merely as a minor ancillary feature that is intrinsically linked to another service;]

F7[“Minister” means Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources;]

“Office” means Office of the Director of Telecommunications Regulation;

F8[“postal services” has the meaning assigned to it by the Communications Regulation (Postal Services) Act 2011;]

F9[“postal service provider” has the meaning assigned to it by the Communications Regulation (Postal Services) Act 2011;

“postal service user” has the meaning assigned to it by the Communications Regulation (Postal Services) Act 2011;

“postal service within the scope of the universal postal service” has the meaning assigned to it by the Communications Regulation (Postal Services) Act 2011;]

F10[“premium rate service” has the meaning assigned to it by the Communications Regulation (Premium Rate Services and Electronic Communications Infrastructure) Act 2010;

“premium rate service licence” means a licence granted under section 6 of the Communications Regulation (Premium Rate Services and Electronic Communications Infrastructure) Act 2010 to provide premium rate services;

“premium rate service provider” has the meaning assigned to it by the Communications Regulation (Premium Rate Services and Electronic Communications Infrastructure) Act 2010;]

“prescribed” means prescribed by regulations made by the Minister;

F2[“related enactment” means—

(a) an enactment specified in Part 1 of Schedule 1, or

(b) a statutory instrument specified in Part 2 of that Schedule, or

(c) a statutory instrument made by the Minister for the purpose of giving effect to an act of an institution of the European Communities relating to—

(i) the provision of an electronic communications service, an electronic communications network or associated facility, or

(ii) the radio frequency spectrum or national numbering resource, or

(iii) a postal service,

or

(d) a statutory instrument made by the Commission under an Act specified in Part 1 of Schedule 1, or

(e) any Act or statutory instrument declared by a provision of another Act or statutory instrument to be a related enactment for the purposes of this Act;]

“superannuation benefits” means pensions, gratuities and other allowances payable on resignation, retirement or death;

F11[“television set” has the meaning assigned to it by section 140 of the Broadcasting Act 2009;]

F2[“this Act” includes all statutory instruments made under this Act;]

“transferred function” means a function transferred to the Commission under section 9;

“undertaking” means a provider of electronic communications networks or services or associated facilities;

F12[“universal postal service” has the meaning assigned to it by the Communications Regulation (Postal Services) Act 2011;]

“user” means a natural or legal person using or requesting a publicly available electronic communications service.

(2)—F13[…]