Immediate Report – Amendment to the Communications Law regarding Change in the Regulatory Format of the Industry
Bezeq - The Israel Telecommunications Corp. Ltd.
(“The Company”)
June 30, 2022
Attn.
Israel Securities Authority
The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange Ltd.
Dear Madam/Sir,
Immediate Report - Amendment to the Communications Law regarding Change in the Regulatory Format of the Communications Industry
The Company is hereby reporting that on June 28, 2022, an amendment to the Communications Law (Bezeq and Broadcasting), 1982 (hereinafter - the "Amendment to the Law") was approved by the Knesset.
To the best of the Company's knowledge, in accordance with the Amendment to the Law (which has yet to be published), the existing regulation format of the communications industry (i.e., Bezeq’s area of activity) will be changed, among other things, such that the requirement to obtain a specific license prior to performing any telecommunications activity was revoked; the requirement was the key tool for regulating communications services in Israel; in its stead, the default regulatory requirement will now be by registration in the registry. The registry will be administered by the Director General of the Ministry of Communications, following a review of threshold conditions. The Amendment to the Law specifies cases in which the requirement to obtain a license will continue to apply.
The Amendment to the Law is expected to lower regulatory barriers to entry into the communications market, with new entities seeking to operate in the market not being required - except in cases specified in the Amendment to the Law - to obtain a license and be able to operate through such registration.
At this stage, the Company cannot assess the impact of the Amendment to the Law on its business, partly because it depends on the manner in which it is implemented by the Ministry of Communications.
For further details on the matter, including the cases in which the requirement to obtain a license will continue to apply, see Section 1.7.4.10 to the Description of the Corporation's Business in the Company's periodic report for 2021, which includes a more detailed description of the Amendment to the Law
Yours sincerely,
“Bezeq” The Israel Telecommunication Corp Limited
The above information constitutes a translation of the Immediate Report published by the Company. The Hebrew version was submitted by the Company to the relevant authorities pursuant to Israeli law, and represents the binding version and the only one having legal effect. This translation was prepared for convenience purposes only.