Measure of the Telecommunications Office of the Slovak Republic No. O-4/2004 of April 22, 2004, laying down particulars on providing public payphones and services for users with health disabilities

The Telecommunications Office of the Slovak Republic pursuant to Article 50, Paragraph 3 of Act No. 610/2003 Z.z. on electronic communications (hereinafter “Act”) herewith sets out:

Article 1

1. The company designated to provide universal service pursuant to Article 50, Paragraph 3 of the Act (hereinafter “company”) will ensure for balanced coverage of the inhabited territory of the Slovak Republic by public payphones (hereinafter “payphones”).
2. The company will provide for a minimum total density of operated payphones located in public places permanently accessible to the public per 1,000 inhabitants as follows:
   1. 1.8 if population of a town is 50,000 and more,
   2. 1.5 if population of a town is 10,000 and more,
   3. 1.2 if population of a town is up to 10,000.
3. The company shall be obliged to install at least one payphone in a village; this does not apply if the village rejects its installation.
4. The company may halt or limit providing telephone service through payphones at a specific location and remove or relocate a payphone in case that
   1. in the course of one year it had been destroyed at least three times, or
   2. a misuse of the payphone had been ascertained for at least three times.

Article 2

The company shall ensure that every payphone

1. is equipped with simple operating instructions,
2. enables for visually challenged users simple identification of all its buttons,
3. enables multilevel amplification of received sound signal,
4. enables receiving telephone calls,
5. enables making telephone calls
   1. local,
   2. long distance,
   3. international,
   4. to mobile networks,
   5. emergency,
   6. to information services,
   7. to an operator of a service for persons with hearing disability,
   8. to report a defect of the payphone,
6. carries an access number,
7. provides information about a telephone number for emergency calls.

Article 3

1. The company will ensure that at least 25 percent of operated payphones located in public places permanently accessible to the public are also usable for individuals with hearing disabilities using hearing aids and ensure that they are appropriately marked.
2. The company will ensure barrier-free access to at least 25 percent of operated payphones located in permanently accessible public places and ensure that they are appropriately marked.

Article 4

1. The company
   1. will provide to clients with hearing impairments and clients with speech disabilities a terminal device enabling them access to public telephone services, including emergency calls,
   2. will ensure for clients with hearing impairments and clients with speech disabilities round-the-clock operator service to help people with hearing impairments.
2. A client with hearing impairment is a client whose degree of functional hearing defect is at least 40 percent and a client with speaking disabilities is a client whose degree of speaking disability and limitation of communication ability is at least 40 percent.

Article 5

1. The company will provide to clients with visual disabilities free access to information services about telephone numbers.
2. A client with visual disabilities is a client whose degree of functional vision defect is at least 50 percent.

Article 6

This measure comes into effect on May 1, 2004 apart from Article 3 and Article 4, Paragraph 1, which shall become effective on January 1, 2006.

Milan Luknár
Chairman