Brussels, 22/03/2012 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday 21 March, the European Commission decided to investigate whether the Dutch telecoms regulator (OPTA) should oblige KPN (the main Dutch telecoms operator) to give alternative operators access to its infrastructure. The Commission doubts that this decision respects European rules on telecommunications. The European commissioner for the digital agenda, Neelie Kroes, said that: “Fair competition delivers market innovation and a better deal for Europe's consumers - including business customers. We need a level playing field: that means all national authorities playing by the rules and acting consistently when they implement EU law.”
OPTA has decided to neither regulate access to KPN's fibre-to-the-office network, nor to oblige KPN to provide other companies with high quality wholesale broadband access over its fibre network. Under the Commission's “Recommendation on Next Generation Access Networks”, a telecom regulator can only decide not to impose regulated unbundled access to the local loop (the physical link between the local exchange and the customer) if it can show that alternative operators can get such access on the market at competitive terms, which is likely to result in effective competition downstream. At this stage, the Commission does not have proof that the market is currently sufficiently competitive to not require regulation. (IL/transl.fl)