This section deals with a number of issues related to the renewal, amendment and renegotiation of authorization conditions – particularly conditions established in individual licences. The issues discussed in this section involve both renewals and amendment at the end of licence terms and amendment of licence conditions before the end of a licence term
Individual licences have normally been granted for fixed terms, and thus issues arise regarding how to handle renewals at the end of a licence term. Licences may be renewed, renewed with amendments, or simply terminated at the end of a licence term. The latter option is extremely rare, since it would deprive customers of service. It is seldom used except in the case of non-operational licensees or serious and continuous breaches of licence conditions, laws or other regulatory instruments.
The legal framework for licence renewals and amendments is normally prescribed in national ICT laws or regulations. Sometimes it is found in the conditions of the licence itself, or in the terms of privatization-related agreements, such as shareholders agreements between governments and strategic investors.
Many countries have introduced reforms in their authorization regimes, such as the move from individual licensing to general authorizations or the introduction of unified or multi-service authorization regimes. Such reforms raise the issue of how to treat authorizations granted under a previous regime. In some cases, existing or new laws grant regulators the right to amend licences unilaterally under the new regime. In others, incentives are provided to continue authorizations under the new regime or to amend licence conditions to harmonize with the new regime. A variety of approaches have been taken to the continuation of licences to reflect changing authorization regimes. Perhaps the most difficult issues are those involving the termination of monopoly or exclusive rights that have been granted under previous regimes, but that are no longer consistent with market opening policies of the new regimes that have been adopted around the world today.