The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC), in order to update regulations on connection rules, made an inquiry to the Information and Communications Administration and Postal Services Administration Council (chaired by Sumitomo Trust & Banking Co., Ltd. Chairman Atsushi Takahashi) on required items in relation to partial revisions to the Telecommunication Business Law Enforcement Ordinance. Commentary on the above-mentioned ministerial ordinance was invited from Tuesday, October 27 to Thursday, November 26, 2009, and five comments were submitted and hence officially announced here.

Outline
Among the connection rule updates indicated in the October 16, 2009 report by the Information and Communications Council, “The State of Connection Rule Compati0bility with Changes in the Environment of the Telecommunications Market” (Council Report No. 69), revisions will be made to the ministerial ordinance in relation to the following five items.
1. Addition of Category 1 telecommunications equipment for indoor wiring of FTTH services.
2. Fiber To The Remote Terminal (FTTR) services.
3. Unbundling of relayed dark fiber with installed WDM (Wavelength-Division Multiplexing) equipment.
4. Addition of “Items Required for Smooth Connections” concerning verification surveys on unusual information channels with regards to relayed dark fiber.
5. Updates to information disclosure rules concerning installation sections of WDM equipment.

+++++++++++++++
For further information about this press release, please fill in the inquiry form and submit it to MIC on the website
http://www.soumu.go.jp/joho_tsusin/eng/contact.html

International Policy Division,
Global ICT Strategy Bureau, MIC
TEL: +81 3 5253 5374 / FAX: +81 3 5253 5924