Product responsibility

TIMItalia is primarily an operator of telecommunications services, which do not endanger the physical health of users¹, and it does not produce the telecommunications equipment it sells². In order to verify that the products placed on the market comply with health and safety legislation, the company has:

• appropriate internal structures that check the incoming quality of the products it markets (telephones, modems, etc.), both in Italy and in the production centres of manufacturers overseas;
• laboratories that test the products marketed by the Group, particularly as regards the electromagnetic emissions of the mobile phones.

In this way, any non-conformities of products are detected prior to their market release, ensuring that products that do not conform with the essential requirements of the European Directives do not reach the end customer.
Services provided to customers are subject to the requirements set out in the Service Charters and in the Terms & Conditions of Subscription, available at telecomitalia.com.

[G4-DMA Customer Health and Safety], [G4-PR1] In its laboratories, TIM validates the satisfaction of the essential requirements envisaged by the current Directives for the release of CE marking; conformity with these requirements is certified at source by the manufacturer. For products sold in Italy, the reference framework is the set of standards that support Directive 1999/5/EC, arranged by product macrofamily³.
With regard to protection and the safety of customers in using the equipment, the Group carries out checks on:

• levels of electromagneti cemissions (SAR) of technologically-innovative smartphones/tablets/modems comply with Standards IEC 62209-1/2
• the technical provisions aimed at reducing the risk of electric shock, overheating, fire and mechanical dangers, through the application of standards EN 60950-1 and EN 60065.

The following were also verified:

• the energy efficiency aspects required by the EuP (Energy-using Products) Directive: equipment placed on the market is checked against the stand-by/off-mode power consumption and performance limits set by European Regulations 1275/2008/EC, 801/2013/EC and 278/2009/EC, for equipment and their external power supplies (available as accessories);
• functionality in different environmental conditions of installation and use of terminals and accessory components for connection to the fixed network: checks are carried out on compliance with temperature and humidity ranges established by ETSI (European Telecommunications Standards Institute) for the specific “service condition”, on which different “severity” levels are based. Checks are carried out on the basis of the following standards: IEC-EN Series 60068-2-1 (cold), 2 (dry heat), 14 (temperature changes), 30 (humidity changes), 78 (continuous humidity). For the most widely available products, with external plastic parts (e.g. AG, Access Gateway), “flame resistance” is checked in the event of malfunctions of the internal electrical parts;
• electromagnetic compatibility aspects, regulated by Directive 2004/108/EU (in future 2014/30/EU): every item of electronic equipment is checked for unintentional electromagnetic signal emissions - in order to avoid interference harmful to radio communication - and the fulfilment of certain immunity from electromagnetic interference requirements. In TIM constant checks are carried out on terminals and network equipment to determine whether they comply with the requirements of international ETSI, CENELEC (European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization) standards regarding electromagnetic compatibility. In particular, checks are carried out on the compliance of equipment with the limits set by standards to limit the emission of electromagnetic disturbances which, in addition to polluting the surrounding environment, can interfere with radio communications.

By law, telecommunications equipment sold in Brazil must be approved by the regulatory authority ANATEL, which verifies, in its laboratories, the conformity with Brazilian legislation on electrical and electromagnetic safety. There is specific legislation to be complied with for each kind of equipment. TIM Brasil asks its suppliers to ensure that equipment has the ANATEL certificate of approval.

[G4-PR2] ] Over the past three years, no non-conformities with European customer health and safety legislation have been found in any product that has reached the final marketing stage, neither in Italy nor in Brazil.

[G4-PR3] When contracts are drafted, for all fixed telephony products, TIM requires packaging to include an environmental statement, a statement about the origin of the tantalum if it has been used in the components, a user manual containing safety information, details of any hazardous materials in the product and disposal information. In respect of the labelling of mobile devices, as they are consumer products that TIM merely resells and that do not require any customisation. The Company simply requires national legislation to be complied with.

In Brazil, TIM complies with national legislation but does not have the procedures concerning the information and labels on products and services. Contracts with suppliers of mobile devices include a ‘product packaging’ clause, which requires each supplier to include - in each box - the instructions and warnings concerning the correct use of both the product and the accessories assembly kit and the connection jacks that may be associated with the product For a particular product range, TIM eco-friendly, discussed in detail in the Environmental Protection chapter(see TIM eco-friendly), all the relevant environmental parameters are also shown (e.g. energy consumption).

[G4-PR4] Over the past three years, no non-conformities regarding product information and labelling have been found in any product that has reached the final marketing stage.

There have however been a few cases in which non-conformities with regulations concerning information about services have been found. More specifically, in Brazil in 2016, 3 incidents occurred resulting in a total penalty of 743,749.74 Reais; in 2015, 1 incident occurred, resulting in a total penalty of 2,897,416 Reais and in 2014, 3 incidents occurred, resulting in a total penalty of 1,533,820 Reais⁴ .
In Italy, the regulatory Authority’s sanctioning procedures for non-conformities with regulations regarding information on services are part of the system of “penalties for the violation of regulatory legislation regarding consumer protection in the supply and use of TLC products and services”; which means that, for Italy, non-conformities regarding information on services have been merged with non-conformities regarding the supply and use of services (table below)⁵.

[G4-PR9] The number and total monetary value of the fines for non-conformities with laws and regulations regarding the supply and use of products and services in Italy^*.

The number and total monetary value of the fines for non-conformities with laws and regulations regarding the supply and use of products and services in Italy*

[G4-PR7] Overall number of non-conformities with legislation and voluntary codes regarding marketing communications in Italy.

Overall number of non-conformities with legislation and voluntary codes regarding marketing communications in Italy.

In Brazil, the only notifications relating to advertising and marketing communications are issued by CONAR (Conselho Nacional de Autorregulamentação Publicitária), a non- governmental self-regulation organisation for advertising which assesses non-conformities with the Brazilian Advertising Self-Regulation Code (“CBAP”) and can recommend that the company change/correct or suspend the advertising (it does not impose financial penalties); CONAR seeks to ensure that each advertisement is true, honest, compliant with the laws of the country and the principle of fair competition. The infringement proceedings may be closed if the parties reach a settlement, if the perpetrators cease the infringement or even if the violation of the Code of Ethics has not been demonstrated.

ANATEL can impose fines or warnings in cases of “general marketing communications” that are not compliant (there were none in the years 2016 and 2014, but two fines in 2015).

[G4-PR9]

The number and total monetary value of the fines for non-conformities with laws and regulations regarding the supply and use of products and services in Brazil.

In 2016 TIM Brasil did not receive notification of non-conformity; in 2015 TIM Brasil received 5 notifications of non-compliance with the codes: 4 proposed by competitors and one by CONAR; in 2014, CONAR did not report any type of non-conformity.

¹ Threats of a psychological nature or relating to security and privacy are dealt with in the Child Protection, E-security and Privacy sections.
² Olivetti, a company of the Group operating in the sector of products and solutions for information technology and the digital hub of Telecom Italia, has hardware production systems. In the context of the Group as a whole, these activities are not significant as the entire turnover of Olivetti amounts to 1,1% of the TIM Group.
³ For “Corded terminals”, the following standards may be applied: EN 60950, EN 55022 and EN 55024; for “Cordless terminals” standards EN 60950-1, EN 50371, EN 62311, ITU-T P360, EN 301489 and EN 301406; for “Mobile terminals (smartphones, data cards etc.)” standards EN 60950-1, EN 62209, EN 302291, EN 301908, EN 301893, EN 301511, EN 300440, EN 300328 and EN 301489.87
⁴ In 2016, 2015 and 2014, in Brazil, there were no incidents of this kind, other than the cases reported, which all resulted
in financial penalties.
⁵ It has not been possible to obtain a complete picture of the non-conformities that resulted in “warnings” in Italy in the current year because the concept of “warning” is not clear cut. The issue of whether and how to assess the various kinds of “warnings” that arrive from the regulatory authority will be considered in detail in future. Furthermore, as things stand at the moment, there is no system for receiving reports on the violation of self-regulatory codes concerning customers other than the reporting mechanisms stated in Chapter Sustainability and Governance.