According to Law 26,092, the state-owned Empresa Argentina de Soluciones Satelitales S.A. (ARSAT S.A.) operates the federal fibre optic (backbone) network (ReFeFo) and provides retail fibre optic and satellite communication services. ARSAT acts both as a satellite operator and as a reseller of satellite capacity to third parties. The company holds exclusive rights to operate and commercialise geostationary orbital position 81W in Ku-band (North and South America) and C-band (hemispheric coverage). The regulator for the telecommunications sector, the National Entity for Communications (ENACOM), allocates frequency bands to ARSAT directly and not through auctions. In 2019, it was decided that the frequencies not used by ARSAT would be put up for auction. However, the auctions have not yet been held. As a result, the State still maintains a monopoly over fibre optic wholesale and satellite communication services.

According to Arts. 48 and 54 of Law No. 27.078, as amended by Decree No. 690/2020, the National Communications Agency (ENACOM) regulates the pricing of essential and strategic public services, including basic fixed and mobile telephony services. This regulatory framework has been identified as a potential obstacle to the bidding process for fifth-generation (5G) mobile technology, which the government intended to initiate in early 2023. It is reported that if service prices continue to be set by the state, as stipulated in the Decree, companies may struggle to recover their investment.

According to Art. 256 of the Corporations Law, the majority of the board members of all companies must be residents of Argentina. In addition, all directors must establish a special domicile for the purposes of notification.

According to Art. 37 of the Patent Law, patent protection can only be obtained by filing separate national patent applications, but it may be endangered if the application for obtaining the same patent in another country was filed more than one year before the Argentinian filing date and/or it has already been published (Art. 13). In those cases, since Argentina adopts absolute novelty, the novelty requirement will not be fulfilled, and a patent will be denied.

It is reported that enforcement of intellectual property rights remains a persistent challenge in Argentina, with stakeholders noting prevalent unfair competition stemming from the sale of pirated goods and services.

Argentina is not a signatory of the 1996 World Trade Organization (WTO) Information Technology Agreement (ITA) nor the 2015 expansion (ITA II).

In April 2009, the Argentine authorities decided to impose a definitive anti-dumping duty under Resolution No. 106/2009 on imports of electrical connection terminals (HS codes 8536.1000, 8536.5090 and 8536.9090) from China and Germany. This measure was reviewed and extended in September 2015 and subsequently in July 2021 for a period of five years. The rate of duty on imports from China is 208% of the FOB price. The duty rate on imports from Germany is 138% of the FOB price for a period of 5 years.

Angola lacks a comprehensive framework for consumer protection that applies to online transactions.

Angola has not signed the United Nations (UN) Convention on the Use of Electronic Communications in International Contracts.

Angola has not adopted national legislation based on or influenced by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) Model Law on Electronic Commerce.

Angola has not adopted national legislation based on or influenced by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) Model Law on Electronic Signatures.

It is reported that SIM card registration is mandatory. SIM cards must be registered directly with INACOM (Angolan National Regulatory Institute for Communications), the ICT regulator that operates under government oversight. The process requires an identity card or driver’s license and tax card for national citizens, or a passport with a valid visa for visitors.

Law No. 26/21, amending Law No. 1/07 on Commercial Activities, maintained the licensing requirements and procedures for importers that were in place in the previous regime. Importers must be registered with the Ministry of Industry and Trade for the category of product they are importing. Moreover, importers of goods exceeding USD 5,000 must obtain an import license. The process of importing goods into Angola is reported to be time-consuming and highly bureaucratic. The import procedures require an estimated USD 460 and 96 hours for import document compliance.

Law No. 26/21, amending Law No. 1/07 on Commercial Activities, maintained the licensing requirements and procedures for importers that were in place in the previous regime. Exporters of goods exceeding USD 5,000 must obtain an export license.