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Leaders of Deutsche Telekom, Telefonica, Orange, Telecom Italia, among those calling for reduction in red tape.
The CEOs of several major European telcos this week said there is room for improvement in the European Commission’s recently-unveiled telecoms reform proposals.
In a joint statement published by ETNO, the group called on the Commission to not be proscriptive when it comes to broadband technology, urging it to draw up rollout incentives that are as inclusive as possible, capturing the widest possible range of technologies and investment models.
They argue that this will bring benefits to consumers more widely and more quickly.
"This review is a unique opportunity to unleash the potential of telecom markets; the final legislative text should result in a concrete and significant reduction of red tape and regulatory burden on network investment," the group said.
The statement was endorsed by the chief executives of Deutsche Telekom, KPN, Orange, PT Portugal, Proximus, Telefonica, Telenor, Telecom Italia, Telekom Austria, and Turk Telekom. It was published by lobby group ETNO on Tuesday.
Earlier in September, the European Commission proposed easing network access rules as one of several measures designed to stimulate massive investments in ultrafast broadband infrastructure.
It is hoped that the reforms will, by 2025, lead to every EU household, rural or urban, being covered by 100 Mbps broadband networks, which are upgradeable to 1 Gbps.
This target implies that the EU wants to encourage widespread fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) and hybrid fibre coaxial (HFC) deployments, since these are the two access technologies available today that can reliably support Gigabit broadband speeds.
However, ETNO’s statement seems to be keen to ensure that other technologies are also on the table.
"Individual or collective investments in the most powerful networks, including FTTH, FTTC (fibre-to-the-cabinet), G.fast, cable and mobile wireless, will contribute to deliver faster Internet speeds to consumers across Europe," the telcos said.
Meanwhile, the EU’s reforms could also make OTT communication service providers like WhatsApp, Skype and Facebook subject to tighter regulations.
Under the proposals, OTTs must ensure that their networks and servers are secure. OTT voice services in particular could be forced to enable their users to call the emergency services.
Unsurprisingly, ETNO and its members support these particular plans, repeating their calls for all digital players to "compete on an equal footing.
"Only in this way we can create more space for innovation and provide new, innovative services for consumers," they said.
