Zakon o ratifikaciji Chestrskega večstranskega usklajevalnega sporazuma iz leta 1997 o tehničnih merilih, načelih usklajevanja in postopkih za uvajanje prizemne digitalne videoradiodifuzije (DVB-T) (MCVUTV)

PREAMBLE

The Delegates of the following CEPT Administrations representing Member countries of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU):
Austria, Belgium, The Republic of Bulgaria, The Republic of Croatia, The Czech Republic, Denmark, The Republic of Estonia, Finland, France, The Federal Republic of Germany, Greece, The Republic of Hungary, Ireland, Italy, The Republic of Latvia, The Republic of Lithuania, The Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, The Republic of Moldova, The Kingdom of The Netherlands, Norway, The Republic of Poland, Portugal, Romania, The Russian Federation, The Slovak Republic, The Republic of Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and The Vatican City State.

meeting in Chester, July 1997, for a DVB-T Technical Criteria, Coordination Principles and Procedures Meeting convened under the terms of Article S6 of the ITU Radio Regulations and in accordance with decisions of the ERC, have, in signing this Multilateral Coordination Agreement, adopted the following provisions concerning the broadcasting service (DVB-T) in the bands 174 to 230 MHz and 470 to 862 MHz in the Planning Area as defined in Article 1 of this Multilateral Coordination Agreement.

ARTICLE 1

Definitions

For the purposes of this Multilateral Coordination Agreement, the following terms shall have the meanings defined below:

1.1 ITU: The International Telecommunication Union.

1.2 Radiocommunication Bureau: The lTU Radiocommunication Bureau (ITU-BR).

1.3 Radio Regulations: The Simplified Radio Regulations adopted in 1995.

1.4 CEPT: The European Conference of Postal and Telecommunications Administrations.

1.5 ERC: The European Radiocommunications Committee of the CEPT.

1.6 ERO: The European Radiocommunications Office.

1.7 DVB-T (Terrestrial Digital Video Broadcasting): A system in the terrestrial Broadcasting Service as specified in the European Telecommunication Standards Institute (ETSI) Standard ETS 300-744 “Digital broadcasting systems for television, sound and data services; framing structure, channel coding and modulation”.

1.8 Multilateral Coordination Agreement: The multi-lateral agreement between CEPT administrations comprising this Chester 1997 Multilateral Coordination Agreement and its Annexes. (This may be abbreviated to ‘CH97’.)

1.9 Administration: Unless otherwise indicated, the term administration designates an administration as defined in the ITU Constitution.

1.10 Managing Administration: The Administration having the responsibility for carrying out the administrative functions associated with this Agreement specified in Articles 6, 8,9,10,11 and 12. The Managing Administration shall be the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

1.11 Contracting Administration: Any administration, representing a Member of the ITU, which has approved or acceded to this Multilateral Coordination Agreement.

1.12 Planning Area: The territories of the Contracting Administrations.

1.13 Assignment: Any assignment for which the procedure of Article 4 has been successfully applied and any assignment in the Stockholm Plan (1961).

1.14 The Stockholm Agreement (1961): The "Regional Agreement for the European Broadcasting Area Concerning the Use of Frequencies by the Broadcasting Service in the VHF and UHF Bands" adopted by the European VHF/UHF Broadcasting Conference (Stockholm, 1961). (This may be abbreviated to ‘ST61’.)

1.15 The ST61 Plan: The Plan annexed to the Stockholm Agreement (1961) and all its subsequent modifications.

1.16 European Broadcasting Area: The geographical area defined in No. S5.14 of the Radio Regulations.

1.17 SFN (Single Frequency Network): A network of synchronised DVB-T stations sharing the same radio frequency channel and transmitting identical signals.

1.18 MFN (Multi Frequency Network): A network of DVB-T Stations using various radio frequency channels.

1.19 DVB-T Station: A Station in the Broadcasting Service using the DVB-T system.

1.20 Analogue Assignment: A frequency assignment relating to a terrestrial television broadcasting station using an analogue system.

1.21 Analogue to Digital Conversion: An administrative procedure to replace one analogue assignment with one or more DVB-T assignment(s) using the same radio frequency channel.

1.22 Frequency Bands III, IV and V:

174 to 230 MHz          Band III
470 to 582 MHz          Band IV
582 to 862 MHz          Band V

ARTICLE 2

Execution of the Multilateral Coordination Agreement

2.1 The Contracting Administrations shall apply the terms of this Agreement for their Terrestrial Digital Video Broadcasting stations (DVB-T), in the bands 174 to 230 MHz and 470 to 862 MHz.
2.2 The Contracting Administrations undertake to study and, in common agreement, to put into practice the measures necessary to eliminate any problems that might result from the application of this Multilateral Coordination Agreement.

ARTICLE 3

Annexes to the Multilateral Coordination Agreement

The Multilateral Coordination Agreement contains the following Annexes:

Annex 1:   Technical criteria to be used in the coordination of DVB-T
Annex 2:   Principles
Annex 3:   Basic characteristics to be communicated for coordination
Annex 4:   Compatibility analysis
Annex 5:   Methods and criteria for assessing compatibility between DVB-T
           and services other than broadcasting
Annex 6:   Rules for analogue to digital conversion
Annex 7:   Tables of distances to be used in the application of Article 4
           of the Agreement

ARTICLE 4

Procedures concerning coordination

Preamble

The following sections give procedures in addition to those given in Article 4 of the Stockholm Agreement 1961 for use in relation to DVB-T stations, including SFNs.

These procedures only deal with the frequency bands in which DVB-T is envisaged, i.e. 174 to 230 MHz and 470 to 862 MHz. In the other bands the procedures of the Stockholm Agreement apply, without additional procedures.

1 Procedure in the Frequency Bands 174 to 230 MHz, and 470 to 862 MHz

This Section 1 consists of three parts: Part A deals with the coordination of analogue television stations; Part B deals with the coordination of DVB-T stations or SFNs; and Part C deals with the coordination of stations of services other than broadcasting.

Part A: Procedure for Analogue television stations
A.1.1

When a Contracting Administration proposes to change the characteristics of an analogue television broadcasting station shown in the ST61 Plan or brought into operation in accordance with the provisions of the present Agreement, or proposes to put into operation a broadcasting station not appearing in the ST61 Plan, the following action shall be taken:

A.1.1.1

(a) If the distances from the station under consideration to the nearest points of the boundaries of other countries, the administrations of which are Contracting Administrations, are less than the limits corresponding to the proposed power of the station and other characteristics specified in Annex 7, the administrations of those countries shall be consulted about the proposal.
(b) If the frequency of the proposed station is in the bands 216 to 230 MHz, 582 to 606 MHz or 790 to 862 MHz, or if the effective antenna height is more than 1200 m, or in cases where an asterisk appears in the tables in Annex 1 of the Stockholm Agreement, the procedure given in paragraph 2.1 of this Article shall be applied in addition to the procedure in A.1.1.1(a).

A.1.1.2

In effecting the consultation of A.1.1.1(a) the administration proposing the change shall furnish all the information specified in the CEPT format (see Table A3.1 of Annex 3), preferably in electronic form. This includes the information specified in Appendix S4 of the Radio Regulations, together with the effective antenna height as defined in Annex 2 to the Stockholm Agreement, its direction characteristics and the polarization of radiation. The administrations that are being consulted may request any other information they need to assess the probability of harmful interference to their own service.

A.1.1.2.1

If the administration consulted is responsible for a DVB-T station or SFN, the method of assessing compatibility given in Annex 4, Section A shall be used.

A.1.1.2.2

If the administration consulted is responsible for an analogue television station which may be converted into digital in the future, the method for assessing the compatibility given in Annex 4, Section A shall be used.

A.1.1.2.3

If an incompatibility resulting from A.1.1.2.1 or A.1.1.2.2 has been identified the administrations concerned should try to reach agreement.

A.1.1.3

If agreement is reached between the administrations concerned, the administration proposing the change may proceed with its project. Administrations which have been consulted in accordance with A.1.1.1(a) and have not replied within ten weeks shall be sent an urgent reminder. Administrations which have not replied within two weeks following the dispatch of the urgent reminder shall be considered to have agreed to the proposed change.

A.1.1.4

If no agreement is reached between the administrations concerned, the ITU-BR will, in accordance with the Stockholm Agreement, make any technical examination that may be requested by the administration proposing the change, or by administrations whose services may be affected by the proposed change, and will inform them of the results of such examination. If no agreement is reached between the administrations concerned, and the administration making the proposal wishes to withdraw its proposal, the consulted administrations shall be informed by the administration proposing the change.

A.1.2

The administration proposing the change may proceed with its project without consulting other administrations if:
(a) the proposed modification relates to a reduction in power or to other changes of technical characteristics which would reduce the probability of harmful interference to services of other countries, or
(b) the distances from the station under consideration to the nearest points of the boundaries of other countries, the administrations of which are Contracting Administrations, are equal to or greater than the limits corresponding to the proposed power of the station and other characteristics specified in Annex 7, and if the frequency of the proposed station is in the bands 174 to 216 MHz, 470 to 582 MHz or 606 to 790 MHz.

A.1.3

In the cases referred to in sub-paragraph A.1.1.3 and paragraph A.1.2 above, the administration proposing the change shall inform the ITU-BR of the particulars specified in sub-paragraph A.1.1.2 above and, where appropriate, of the names of the countries consulted, and inform the ERO of the station’s agreed characteristics in the CEPT format in electronic form (see Table A3.1 of Annex 3).

A.1.4

In accordance with the Stockholm Agreement the ITU-BR will publish the information in a special section of its weekly circular.

Part B: Procedure for DVB-T stations or SFNs
B.1.1

When a Contracting Administration proposes to change the characteristics of a DVB-T station shown in the ST61 Plan or brought into operation in accordance with the provisions of the present Agreement the action given in B.1.1.1(a) shall be taken.
When a Contracting Administration proposes to convert an analogue television broadcasting station, shown in the ST61 Plan or brought into operation in accordance with the provisions of the present Agreement, into a DVB-T station or SFN, the action given in B.1.1.1(b) shall be taken.
When a Contracting Administration proposes to put into operation a DVB-T station or SFN, not appearing in the ST61 Plan, the action given in B.1.1.1(b) shall be taken.
In all the above cases the provisions of B.1.1.1(c) and B.1.1.2 and its sub-sections apply, excluding B.1.1.2.1, B.1.1.2.2 and B.1.1.2.3 in the case of the proposed conversion of an analogue television broadcasting station into a DVB-T station or SFN where the procedures given in Annex 6 apply.

B.1.1.1

(a) If the distances from the station under consideration (which may form part of an SFN) to the nearest points of the boundaries of other countries, the administrations of which are Contracting Administrations, are less than the limits corresponding to the proposed power of the station and other characteristics specified in Annex 7, the administrations of those countries shall be consulted about the proposal.
(b) If the distances from the station under consideration, or one of the stations forming an SFN, to the nearest points of the boundaries of other countries, the administrations of which are Contracting Administrations, are less than the limits corresponding to the proposed power of the station and other characteristics specified in Annex 7, the administrations of those countries shall be consulted regarding the station or, in the case of an SFN, all those stations of the SFN which have not already been coordinated.
In the case of a conversion of an analogue station into a single DVB-T station or an SFN, the consulted administrations shall follow the procedure given in Annex 6, in order to determine the acceptability of the proposal.
No consultation in the case of a converted analogue station into a single DVB-T station is required provided the e.r.p. is no more than the analogue e.r.p. minus 18 dB, and other technical characteristics are not changed or would reduce the probability of harmful interference.
(c) If the frequency of the proposed station is in the bands 216 to 230 MHz, 582 to 606 MHz or 790 to 862 MHz, or if the effective antenna height is more than 1200 m, or in cases where an asterisk appears in the tables in Annex 1 of the Stockholm Agreement, the procedure given in paragraph 2.1 of this Article shall be applied in addition to the procedure of B.1.1.1(a).

B.1.1.2

In effecting the consultation of B.1.1.1(a) or B.1.1.1(b) the administration proposing the change of the ST 61 Plan shall furnish all the information specified in the CEPT format (see Table A3.2 of Annex 3), preferably in electronic form. This includes the information specified in Appendix S4 of the Radio Regulations, together with the effective height of the antenna as defined in Annex 2 to the Stockholm Agreement, its direction characteristics and the polarization of radiation. The administrations that are being consulted may request any other information they need to assess the probability of harmful interference to their own services.

B.1.1.2.1

If the administration consulted is responsible for an analogue television station, the method for assessing compatibility given in Annex 4, Section B shall be used.

B.1.1.2.2

If the administration consulted is responsible for an analogue television station which may be converted into digital in the future, the method for assessing the compatibility given in Annex 4, Section C shall be used.

B.1.1.2.3

If the administration consulted is responsible for a DVB-T station or SFN, the method for assessing compatibility given in Annex 4, Section C shall be used.

B.1.1.2.4

If the administration consulted is responsible for T-DAB as defined in the Wiesbaden Special Arrangement 1995, the relevant provisions of that Special Arrangement shall be applied with the protection criteria defined in Annex 1, Section 4.5.

B.1.1.2.5

If the administration consulted is responsible for services other than broadcasting having a primary status, the method of assessing compatibility given in Annex 4, Section D shall be used.

B.1.1.2.6

If an incompatibility resulting from B.1.1.2.1, B.1.1.2.2, B.1.1.2.3, B.1.1.2.4 or B.1.1.2.5 has been identified the administrations concerned should try to reach agreement.

B.1.1.3

If agreement is reached between the administrations concerned, the administration proposing the change may proceed with its project. Administrations which have been consulted in accordance with B.1.1.1(a) and B.1.1.1(b) and have not replied within ten weeks shall be sent an urgent reminder. Administrations which have not replied within two weeks following the dispatch of the urgent reminder shall be considered to have agreed to the proposed change.

B.1.1.4

If no agreement is reached between the administrations concerned, the ITU-BR will, in accordance with the Stockholm Agreement, make any technical examination that may be requested by the administration proposing the change, or by administrations whose services may be affected by the proposed change, and will inform them of the results of such examination. If no agreement is reached between the administrations concerned, and the administration making the proposal wishes to withdraw its proposal, the consulted administrations shall be informed by the administration proposing the change.

B.1.2

The administration proposing the change of the Plan may proceed with its project without consulting other administrations if:
(a) the proposed modification relates to a reduction in power (but not resulting from an analogue to digital conversion) or to other changes of technical characteristics which would reduce the probability of harmful interference to services of other countries, or
(b) the distances from the station under consideration to the nearest points of the boundaries of other countries, the administrations of which are Contracting Administrations, are equal to or greater than the limits corresponding to the proposed power of the station and other characteristics specified in Annex 7, and if the frequency of the proposed station is in the bands 174 to 216 MHz, 470 to 582 MHz or 606 to 790 MHz, or
(c) the proposed modification relates to the conversion of an analogue station into a single DVB-T station, provided the e.r.p. is no more than the analogue e.r.p. minus 18 dB, and other technical characteristics are not changed or would reduce the probability of harmful interference

B.1.2.1

In case B.1.2(b) no protection can be claimed for the station of the project, although the administration proposing the change may choose to consult other Contracting Administrations in order to seek protection for the station of the project.

B.1.3

In the cases referred to in sub-paragraph B.1.1.3 and paragraph B.1.2 above, the administration proposing the change shall inform the ITU-BR of the particulars specified in sub-paragraph B.1.1.2 above and, where appropriate, of the names of the countries consulted, and inform the ERO of the station’s agreed characteristics in the CEPT format in electronic form (see Table A3.2 of Annex 3). In the case of conversion from an analogue station into a DVB-T station or SFN, the identification code of the DVB-T station or one of the stations of the SFN should be the same as the original analogue identification code.

B.1.4

In accordance with the Stockholm Agreement, the ITU-BR will publish the information in a special section of its weekly circular.

Part C: Procedure for stations of services other than broadcasting having primary status
C.1.1

When a Contracting Administration proposes to change the characteristics of a station of a service other than broadcasting, having primary status and which has previously been coordinated, or proposes to put into operation a new station of such a service, the following action shall be taken:

C.1.1.1

If the distances from the station under consideration to the nearest points of the boundaries of other countries, the administrations of which are Contracting Administrations, are less than:
– 900 km in the case of aeronautical radionavigation services or,
– the limits corresponding to the proposed power of the station and other characteristics specified in Annex 7 for all other services having primary status;
the administrations of those countries shall be consulted about the proposal.

C.1.1.2

In effecting the consultation of C.1.1.1 the Administration proposing the change shall furnish all the relevant information in CEPT format, preferably in electronic form. The administrations that are being consulted may request any other information they need to assess the probability of harmful interference to their own service.

C.1.1.2.1

If the administration consulted is responsible for a DVB-T station or SFN, the method of assessing compatibility given in Annex 4, Section E shall be used.

C.1.1.2.2

If the administration consulted is responsible for an analogue television station, which may be converted into digital in the future, the method for assessing compatibility given in Annex 4, Section E shall be used.

C.1.1.2.3

If an incompatibility resulting from C.1.1.2.1 or C.1.1.2.2, has been identified the administrations concerned should try to reach agreement.

C.1.1.3

If agreement is reached between the administrations concerned and if the provisions of paragraph 2.2 of this Article have resulted in agreement, the administration proposing the change may proceed with its project. Administrations, which have been consulted in accordance with C.1.1.1 and have not replied within ten weeks, shall be sent an urgent reminder. Administrations, which have not replied within two weeks following the dispatch of the urgent reminder, shall be considered to have agreed to the proposed change.

C.1.1.4

If no agreement is reached between the administrations concerned, and the administration making the proposal wishes to withdraw its proposal, the consulted administrations shall be informed.

C.1.2

The administration proposing the change may proceed with its project without consulting other administrations if the proposed modification relates to a reduction in power or to other changes of technical characteristics, which would reduce the probability of harmful interference to services of other countries.

C.1.3

In all cases, after agreement has been reached, the administration proposing the change shall inform the ERO in CEPT format in electronic form of the station’s agreed characteristics together with the names of the countries consulted. Administrations are encouraged to notify their stations of services other than broadcasting to ITU-BR.

2 Additional procedures in the Frequency Bands 216 to 230 MHz, 582 to 606 MHz and 790 to 862 MHz, and for television broadcasting stations with an effective antenna height of more than 1200 m

2.1 Procedure for Broadcasting Stations

2.1.1 Any Contracting Administration proposing to change the technical characteristics of any of its broadcasting stations appearing in the Plan or to operate broadcasting stations not appearing in the Plan, shall first inform the ITU-BR, furnishing the technical information specified in sub-paragraphs A.1.1.2 or B.1.1.2.

2.1.2 In accordance with the Stockholm Agreement, the ITU-BR will publish this information in a special section of its weekly circular, indicating that comments on such information should be sent directly to the administration originating the proposal.

2.1.3 Such comments must be received by the administration originating the proposal within the twelve weeks following the date of the weekly circular in question. Administrations which have not furnished such comments within this period shall be considered to have agreed to the proposed change.

2.1.4 If no comments have been received at the expiry of the period of twelve weeks referred to in sub-paragraph 2.1.3 above, or if agreement has been reached with the administration making these comments, the administration proposing the change may proceed with its project, and shall inform the ITU-BR in the manner specified in paragraphs A.1.3 or B.1.3.

2.2 Procedure for Stations of Services other than broadcasting

For stations of services other than broadcasting, the provisions of the Radio Regulations shall apply, taking into account the categories of service and allocations specified in Article S5 thereof. Contracting Administrations proposing to change the technical characteristics of such stations or to establish new stations of such services shall take into account the broadcasting stations appearing in the Plan or brought into use in accordance with this Agreement and shall do so after reaching mutual agreement with the administrations that may be concerned.

3 Procedure common to all Frequency Bands

3.1 If a change, although made in accordance with the provisions of Sections 1 and 2 of this Article, causes harmful interference to services of other Contracting Administrations, the administration, which has made the change, shall take the requisite action to eliminate such interference.

3.2 If, after application of the procedure defined in sub-paragraphs A.1.1.1, A.1.1.2 and A.1.1.3, or, B.1.1.1, B.1.1.2 and B.1.1.3, or, C.1.1.1, C.1.1.2 and C.1.1.3 on the one hand, and paragraphs 2.1 and 2.2 of this Article on the other hand, no agreement has been reached between the administrations concerned, recourse may be had to the procedures defined in Article 56 of the Constitution ‘Settlement of Disputes’ or in Article 41 ‘Arbitration Procedure’ of the Convention, of the International Telecommunication Union.

ARTICLE 5

Compatibility and sharing with other radiocommunication services

5.1 Annex 5 of the Multilateral Coordination Agreement contains the methods and criteria for assessing compatibility between DVB-T and other services, to be used for the coordination of DVB-T and other primary service assignments.

5.2 Annex 5 may need to be modified to take account of further technical studies or practical experience gained during the introduction of DVB-T. Such modifications will need to be agreed to in accordance with Article 10 of this Agreement.

5.3 The procedures for the coordination of DVB-T and other primary services are contained in Article 4 of this Agreement.

ARTICLE 6

Accession to the Multilateral Coordination Agreement

6.1 Any CEPT Administration, which has not signed the Multilateral Coordination Agreement, may at any time deposit an instrument of accession with the Managing Administration, who shall immediately inform the other administrations.

6.2 Any administration within the European Broadcasting Area and immediate neighbouring countries may, at any time subsequent to the meeting of CEPT administrations in Chester on 25 July 1997, deposit an instrument of accession with the Managing Administration, who shall immediately inform the other administrations.

6.3 Accession to the Multilateral Coordination Agreement shall be made without reservation and shall apply to the ST61 Plan as it stands at the time of accession.

6.4 Accession to the Multilateral Coordination Agreement shall become effective on the date on which the instrument of accession is received by the Managing Administration.

ARTICLE 7

Scope of application of the Multilateral Coordination Agreement

7.1 The Multilateral Coordination Agreement shall bind Contracting Administrations in their relations with one another but shall not bind those administrations in their relations with non-Contracting Administrations.

7.2 If a Contracting Administration enters reservations with regard to any provision of this Multilateral Coordination Agreement, other Contracting Administrations shall be free to disregard such provisions in their relations with the administration, which has made such reservations.

ARTICLE 8

Denunciation of the Multilateral Coordination Agreement

8.1 Any Contracting Administration may denounce this Multilateral Coordination Agreement at any time by a notification sent to the Managing Administration, who shall inform the other Contracting Administrations.

8.2 Denunciation shall become effective one year after the date on which the Managing Administration receives the notification of denunciation.

ARTICLE 9

Notification of this Multilateral Coordination Agreement to the ITU

9. In accordance with No. S6.5 of the Radio Regulations, the Managing Administration shall notify the Secretary-General of the ITU of the conclusion and content of this Multilateral Coordination Agreement and shall provide details of:
– the expiry of the Multilateral Coordination Agreement;
– any administration which accedes to this Multilateral Coordination Agreement;
– any administration which denounces this Multilateral Coordination Agreement.

ARTICLE 10

Revision of the Multilateral Coordination Agreement

10.1 No revision of this Multilateral Coordination Agreement shall be undertaken except by a meeting to which at least all the Contracting Administrations shall be invited. The Managing Administration shall convene such a meeting at the request of at least 50% of the Contracting Administrations. The Managing Administration shall, on receipt of a request from a Contracting Administration, consult all Contracting Administrations to determine whether the necessary majority exists.

10.2 When new or revised technical data are required, these may be included as part of the Multilateral Coordination Agreement by the procedure given in 10.3.

10.3 New or revised technical data may be prepared in the form of ERC Decisions, developed by the Working Groups of the ERC and approved by the ERC according to its Rules of Procedure. The provisions of any new or revised technical data shall be applied between the administrations that have committed themselves to implement the associated ERC Decision.

ARTICLE 11

Entry into force and duration of the Multilateral Coordination Agreement

11.1 This Multilateral Coordination Agreement shall enter into force on 25 September 1997, at 0001 hours UTC.

11.2 This Multilateral Coordination Agreement shall remain in force until it is abrogated by a meeting to which all the Contracting Administrations shall be invited. The Managing Administration shall convene such a meeting at the request of at least 50% of the Contracting Administrations. The Managing Administration shall, on receipt of a request from a Contracting Administration, consult all Contracting Administrations to determine whether the necessary majority exists.

ARTICLE 12

Cases where ratification or confirmation is required

12.1 In accordance with the constitutional rules in force in their respective countries, some administrations may only sign this Multilateral Coordination Agreement subject to ratification or confirmation.

12.2 The instrument of ratification or confirmation shall be deposited with the Administration of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, which shall notify the Contracting Administrations of each deposit of ratification or confirmation. Ratifying or Confirming Administrations will undertake completion of the necessary process as soon as practical.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned Representatives of CEPT Administrations have signed the originals in each of the English, French and German languages of this Multilateral Coordination Agreement, each version being authentic. These originals shall be deposited in the archives of the Administration of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, which shall forward a copy to each Contracting Administration.

Done at Chester, 25 July 1997

Resolutions

                                RESOLUTION 1

   Invitation to the CEPT European Radiocommunications Committee (ERC) to
        assign tasks to the European Radiocommunications Office (ERO)


The Multilateral Coordination Meeting, Chester, 25 July 1997,

considering

a)    that, in accordance with its agenda, it has adopted a Multilateral
      Coordination Agreement relating to Technical Criteria, Coordination
      Principles and Procedures for the introduction of DVB-T in Europe in
      the frequency bands 174 to 230 MHz and 470 to 862 MHz;

b)    that the assistance of the ERO should be sought to assist in
      implementing the procedures of the Agreement, in particular to carry
      out the following tasks:

        i)   collecting data on television stations from administrations,
             performing validation checks and resolving format problems;

        ii)  collecting data on other services from administrations,
             performing validation checks and resolving format problems;

        iii) maintaining databases of television stations and stations of
             other services relevant to DVB-T planning;

        iv)  providing software support to administrations to facilitate
             data collection;

        v)   co-operating with the EBU on compatibility calculations to
             allow administrations to utilise the results of these
             calculations and to gain access to principal software blocks
             used for calculations;

        vi)  providing software support to administrations to facilitate
             basic compatibility calculations; and

        vii) circulating data contained in the databases to administrations;

noting

       that any request for assistance from the ERO will have resource
       implications;

resolves

       to invite the CEPT/ERC to consider assigning to the ERO the tasks
       identified in considering b) above.

RESOLUTION 2


  Follow-up CEPT activities in advance of a possible future ITU Conference
                               to revise ST61

The Multilateral Coordination Meeting, Chester, 25 July 1997,

considering

a)     that, in accordance with its agenda, it has adopted a Multilateral
       Coordination Agreement relating to Technical Criteria, Coordination
       Principles and Procedures for the introduction of DVB-T in Europe in
       the Frequency Bands 174 to 230 MHz and 470 to 862 MHz;

b)     that DVB-T will be introduced by coordination of assignments on the
       basis of the above Criteria or by conversion of analogue television
       assignments into digital television assignments;

c)     that analogue television and DVB-T will co-exist in a transition
       period;

d)     that in some countries the channels above channel 60 will be a very
       important means for the introduction of DVB-T;

e)     that administrations having no assignments in ST61 for channels above
       channel 60 may wish to co-ordinate such assignments on the basis of
       equitable access;

noting

that the implementation of DVB-T on the basis of the Stockholm Plan,
including extrapolations to this Plan, may not lead to an optimum solution
with respect to frequency efficiency (including SFNs), reception conditions
and network economy;

resolves

1      that the CEPT should follow the growth of DVB-T and arrange a
       preparatory planning meeting as soon as practicable when a
       significant degree of penetration has been reached;

2      that the CEPT preparatory planning meeting should prepare for the
       establishing of a frequency plan for DVB-T only, including the rules
       for the transition to all-digital terrestrial television.

RESOLUTION 3

Further studies on the technical criteria to be used in the coordination of
   DVB-T and the methods and criteria for assessing compatibility between
    digital terrestrial television broadcasting and services other than
                                broadcasting


The Multilateral Coordination Meeting, Chester, 25 July 1997,

considering

a)     that, in accordance with its agenda, it has adopted a Multilateral
       Coordination Agreement relating to Technical Criteria, Coordination
       Principles and Procedures for the introduction of DVB-T in Europe in
       the frequency bands 174 to 230 MHz and 470 to 862 MHz;

b)     that Annex 1 of the Agreement contains technical criteria to be used
       in the coordination of DVB-T and Annex 5 of the Agreement contains
       the methods and criteria for assessing compatibility between digital
       terrestrial television and services other than broadcasting, to be
       used for the coordination of digital terrestrial television and other
       primary services;

c)     that further study could provide updated technical criteria for DVB-T
       and improved methods and more detailed information on the criteria
       for assessing compatibility;

d)     that it may be necessary to consider additional systems of other
       services and develop the associated methods and criteria for
       assessing their compatibility with digital terrestrial television;

e)     that a provision for revising the technical data is contained in
       Article 10 of the Agreement;

resolves

1      to invite the CEPT/ERC to continue its studies on technical criteria
       for DVB-T and the methods and criteria for assessing compatibility
       between digital terrestrial television broadcasting and other
       services;

2      to invite the CEPT/ERC to make this material available, in the form
       of ERC Decisions or other documentation, that could be used to revise
       the technical data in accordance with Article 10 of the Agreement.

RESOLUTION 4

Invitation to the CEPT European Radiocommunications Committee to consider a
 change to its Rules of Procedure to enable administrations outside CEPT to
                  commit themselves to apply ERC Decisions


The Multilateral Coordination Meeting, Chester, 25 July 1997,

considering

a)     that, in accordance with its agenda, it has adopted a Multilateral
       Coordination Agreement relating to Technical Criteria, Coordination
       Principles and Procedures for the introduction of DVB-T in Europe in
       the frequency bands 174 to 230 MHz and 470 to 862 MHz;

b)     that Article 6 of the Agreement contains provisions for certain non
       CEPT administrations to accede to the Agreement at any time
       subsequent to the Chester Meeting, 25 July 1997;

c)     that Article 10 of the Agreement contains provisions for new or
       revised technical data to be included as part of the Agreement by
       means of ERC Decisions;

d)     that, at present, the CEPT/ERC Rules of Procedure do not permit non
       CEPT administrations the opportunity to commit themselves to apply
       ERC Decisions;

noting

1      that non-CEPT administrations may adopt CEPT Recommendations;

2      that non-CEPT administrations may participate in the public
       consultation procedures for ERC Decisions;

resolves

       to invite the CEPT/ERC to consider a change to its Rules of Procedure
       to enable administrations outside CEPT to commit themselves to apply
       ERC Decisions.

RESOLUTION 5

Time schedule for the submission of data to the ERO and for the calculation
                    of reference interference situations


The Multilateral Coordination Meeting, Chester, 25 July 1997,

considering

a)     that, in accordance with its agenda, it has adopted a Multilateral
       Coordination Agreement relating to Technical Criteria, Coordination
       Principles and Procedures for the introduction of DVB-T in Europe in
       the frequency bands 174 to 230 MHz and 470 to 862 MHz;

b)     that, to facilitate implementation of that Agreement, databases will
       need to be established containing:

       transmitter data and coverage area test points for broadcasting
       assignments;

       country boundary test points; and

       transmitter and receiver data and test point data for stations for
       services other than broadcasting.

c)     that such databases will take some time to establish;

d)     that it may be desirable to restrict access to the information in the
       databases, at least until it is confirmed and finalised.

noting

       that the Chester Meeting has requested, in Resolution 1, the ERC to
       assign tasks to the ERO;

resolves

1      that the procedures detailed in the Annex to this Resolution should
       be implemented;

2      that the ERC be invited to consider the question of external access
       to the information held by the ERO.


                            Annex to Resolution 5

 Time schedule for submission of data to the ERO and for the calculation of
                      reference interference situations


1.    Reference date for calculation of reference situations

For all coordinated television stations (including stations contained in
ST61) within the relevant frequency bands the reference interference
situation is calculated on the basis of the situation at 25/7/97. After
submission of all relevant and approved data, as described below, to the
ERO, a final reference calculation is done after 31/10/98 based on the
submitted data and the interference situation at 25/7/97.


2.    Television assignment data and test points

Databases containing transmitter data, coverage area test points and country
boundary test points will take some time to establish. Therefore the
following course of action is proposed:

      1. All data exchange will be done by electronic means.

      2. The ERO will send to all administrations a copy of the updated ST61
      Plan, in the CEPT format, by 1/9/97. On the same date, the ERO will
      send to all administrations a set of software intended to assist in
      the preparation of the data files which administrations will need to
      send to the ERO.

      3. Data in accordance with the CEPT data format should be sent to the
      ERO for as many as possible of all coordinated television stations
      (including stations contained in ST61) before 30/11/97. This will
      permit initial calculation of test points and detection of errors.
      Data for all television assignments should be sent to the ERO before
      31/1/98. These data are sent by the ERO to the administrations of all
      countries for checking and agreement. Cases where there are
      disagreements should be clarified between the administrations
      concerned and cases where data errors were detected and corrected by
      the administration concerned should be sent to the ERO before 30/6/98.

      4. Country boundary test points will be provisionally chosen by the
      ERO on the basis of the ITU Digital World Map before 30/11/97 and sent
      to all administrations. The country boundary test points will be
      checked, modified where appropriate and finally agreed as common
      boundary test points by the administrations sharing any given
      boundary. After bilateral acceptance the test points will be sent to
      the ERO before 31/3/98.

      5. An initial set of coverage area test points for all assignments
      will be generated automatically by the ERO in cooperation with the EBU
      and sent to all administrations before 31/12/97. A revised set of
      coverage area test points will be generated before 31/8/98 on the
      basis of the final assignment data and taking account any comments
      received from administrations.

      6. The revised set of coverage area test points calculated under 5
      will be checked by the administrations concerned and any modifications
      to the test point locations, will be sent to the ERO before 31/10/98.


3.    Data and test points for stations of services other than broadcasting

Databases containing receiver and transmitter data and test points will take
some time to establish. Therefore the following course of action is
proposed:

      1. All data exchange will be done by electronic means.

      2. Data in accordance with the CEPT data format should be sent to the
      ERO for as many as possible of all stations of services other than
      broadcasting before 30/11/97, including the locations of test points.
      This will permit initial detection of errors. Data for all other
      service stations should be sent to the ERO before 31/1/98. These data
      are sent by the ERO to the administrations of all countries for
      checking and agreement. Cases where there are disagreements should be
      clarified between the administrations concerned and cases where data
      errors were detected and corrected by the administration concerned
      should be sent to the ERO before 30/6/98.

RESOLUTION 6

Action to develop, within the ITU Radiocommunication Study Groups, an ITU-R
        Recommendation concerning the coordination of DVB-T stations

The Multilateral Coordination Meeting, Chester, 25 July 1997,

considering

a)     that, in accordance with its agenda, it has adopted a Multilateral
       Coordination Agreement relating to Technical Criteria, Coordination
       Principles and Procedures for the introduction of DVB-T in Europe in
       the frequency bands 174 to 230 MHz and 470 to 862 MHz;

b)     that Article 4 of the Agreement contains procedures for Contracting
       Administrations to coordinate their digital terrestrial broadcasting
       stations with the stations of other Contracting Administrations;

c)     that some Contracting Administrations have borders with countries
       that are not Contracting Administrations;

d)     that, in such cases, the provisions of the Radio Regulations or other
       regional agreements are applicable but, at present, these do not take
       into account the technical criteria developed especially for digital
       terrestrial television broadcasting;

resolves

1      to invite the CEPT/ERC to take appropriate action, within the ITU-R
       Study Groups, for the preparation of an ITU-R Recommendation that
       could be used by the ITU-BR to develop a Rule of Procedure to deal
       with DVB-T assignments within the Stockholm Agreement and to
       establish technical standards to be used in response to requests from
       administrations.