Can HAKOMetar be used to increase transparency in the context of network neutrality?

HAKOM, the Croatian national regulatory authority has been following the issues of network neutrality and Internet openness since the beginning of 2010. In January 2011, HAKOM held a public consultation on the situation with the network neutrality on the Croatian market. Based on the results of the public consultations and the subsequent continuous monitoring of the situation on the domestic market, the strategy has been centred around the applicability of the increased transparency towards end users combined with the sufficient level of competition on the market. BEREC, the European association of the European national regulators, issued a guideline on transparency in the context of network neutrality. In this paper the situation on the Croatian market is analysed through the criteria defined in the guidelines. Special focus is placed on the implementation of the guidelines by means of the Ordinance on Manner and Conditions for the Provision of Electronic Communications Networks and Services. The ordinance introduces the software based tool HAKOMETAR to be used by the users of the Internet access service to measure the quality of their service. Statistical data on the usage of the tool is presented. The conclusion based on the analysis of the situation on the Croatian market supported by the results of the statistical data leads further to a recommendation for the regulation strategy.