It is reported that the "Agencia de Regulación y Control de las Telecomunicaciones" (ARCOTEL), the executive authority for the supervision and administration of services in the telecommunications sector, is independent from the government in the decision-making process.

Art. 40 of the Organic Telecommunications Law provides that for the granting and renewal of licenses for the provision of telecom services, the Agency on Telecommunication Regulation and Control (Agencia de Regulación y Control de las Telecomunicaciones, ARCOTEL) will consider the need to address: technological development, market evolution, the National Telecommunications Plan, the needs for the sustained development of the sector and of the State and universal access to information and communication technologies, as well as the effective satisfaction of the public or general interest.
Art. 40 also establishes that in the case of applications for the granting of new licenses, it must be evaluated whether any company or group of companies related to the applicant of the license provides the same service or similar services and the effects that the granting of the new license required could have on the market. For this purpose, a sworn statement must be submitted. In this regard, Art. 24 of the Telecommunications and Frequencies Enabling Titles Regulation provides that no license for the rendering of telecommunications services shall be granted to natural or juridical persons that have a valid license for the rendering of the same service of the general telecommunications regime, without prejudice to the application of the criteria set forth in Art. 40 of the Organic Law of Telecommunications.

Ecuador has not appended the World Trade Organization (WTO) Telecom Reference Paper to its schedule of commitments.

It is reported that in Ecuador a number of telecommunication service providers in rural areas offer internet access services without a license or use licenses that are not suitable for such activity. This includes service providers offering internet services using enabling titles for the provision of different services, e.g. fixed telephony, wireless access, private radio, etc. This reportedly provides an unfair advantage to these providers as they are neither subject to the payment of taxes, nor to the payment of spectrum and concession fees.

Art. 34 of Ecuador’s Organic Telecommunications Law requires telecommunications suppliers with at least a 30% market share to pay 0.5% of their gross revenue to the government and an additional 1% of their gross revenue for each additional 5% market share they hold above 30%. However, Corporación Nacional de Telecomunicaciones (CNT), which is owned by the government, is not included in the calculation of market share and is exempt from the fees.
CNT is the dominant provider of fixed telecommunications services and is the second largest supplier of subscription television services. In addition to the fee exemption, the government of Ecuador maintains policies that favor CNT over other competitors, including exemptions from paying certain license taxes and fees.

It is reported that Ecuador does not mandate functional separation for operators with significant market power (SMP) in the telecom market. However, it is reported that there is an obligation of accounting separation.

According to Art. 313 of the Constitution of the Republic of Ecuador 2008, the State reserves the right to administer, regulate, control, and manage strategic sectors, including telecommunications. Furthermore, according to Arts. 316 of the Constitution of the State and 14. of the Organic Law on Telecommunications, public telecommunications services are provided directly by the State, through public telecommunications companies, or indirectly through delegation to mixed economy companies in which it has a majority shareholding.

The Corporación Nacional de Telecomunicaciones (National Corporation of Telecommunications) is the dominant provider of fixed telecommunication services, and is fully owned by the Ecuadorian Government. It was created by Executive Decree No. 218, which specifically establishes that the Ministry of Telecommunications and the Information Society, representing the State, is the sole shareholder.

La Empresa Pública Municipal de Telecomunicaciones, Agua Potable, Alcantarillado y Saneamiento de Cuenca (Etapa EP, Municipal Public Company of Telecommunications, Drinking Water, Sewage and Sanitation of Cuenca), created by a January 2010 ordinance, is another case in which the telecom operator is a state-owned enterprise. Initially created in February 1948, as Empresa Municipal de Electricidad, Agua Potable y Teléfonos (EMLAT), ETAPA EP provides municipal internet and fixed, wireless and public telephone services.

Chapter VII of the Intellectual Property Law protects undisclosed information related to trade secrets, industrial secrets, or any other type of confidential information against unauthorized acquisition, use or disclosure by the holder. Moreover, Art. 545 of Organic Code on Social Economy of Knowledge, Creativity and Innovation mentions the concept of trade secret and the Art. 40 of Social Economy of Knowledge Organic Code Regulation also mentions the concept of "Undisclosed Information".

There is an obligation for passive infrastructure sharing in Ecuador to deliver telecom services to end users. It is practiced in the mobile sector and in the fixed sector. The Organic Telecommunications Law and complementary technical regulations are the theoretical frameworks for passive infrastructure sharing in Ecuador. According to Art. 3 of the Technical Standard for Shared Use of Physical Infrastructure of the General Telecommunications Regime Services, services providers related to the telecommunications sector have the obligation to share their physical infrastructure.

Ecuador has ratified the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Performances and Phonograms Treaty.

Copyright is not adequately enforced online in Ecuador. It is reported that the enforcement of intellectual property rights (IPR) against widespread piracy in Ecuador remains weak, including online. Moreover, there are concerns related to overly broad or vaguely defined copyright exceptions and limitations. In addition, it is reported that the rate of unlicensed software installation in the country was 68% in 2017 (above the 52% rate of the Latin American countries) for an estimated commercial value of USD 132 million.

Ecuador has ratified the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Copyright Treaty.

Ecuador has a clear regime of exceptions to copyright that follows fair use, which allows the lawful use of copyrighted works by third parties without the need to obtain permission. Art. 211 of the Organic Code of the Social Economy of Knowledge, Creativity and Innovation follows the fair use model for copyright exceptions, and establishes five factors for the determination of fair use:
- The purposes and nature of the use;
- The nature of the work;
- The amount and importance of the part used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole;
- The impact of the use on the current and potential market value of the work; and
- The possession and effective exercise of other fundamental rights.
In addition, Ecuador is a member of the Andean Community of Nations, and is subject to Decision 351 issued in 1993. Art. 22 of the Decision establishes a list of mandatory exceptions in the domestic market, but also allows the adoption of additional exceptions in the domestic law of the members, as long as they comply with the international standards of the so-called three-step test.

Ecuador is a party to the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT).