Brussels, 18/10/2012 (Agence Europe) - At the end of an in-depth investigation, the European Commission has asked the Finnish telecoms regulator, FICORA, to amend or withdraw its proposal on regulated access to dominant operators' broadband networks. If implemented in its current form, the proposed measure would damage competition and hamper investment in competitive broadband services. It could also limit in the long term offers available to consumers and businesses. The role of regulators is to ensure stable and predictable prices for broadband, and also to introduce effective safeguards against discrimination, so that dominant operators do not get an unfair advantage. However, FICORA's proposal lacks both these objectives. “I want FICORA to make a proposal which creates a transparent and predictable regulatory environment for Finnish broadband and which encourages investment and competition”, European Commissioner for the Digital Agenda Neelie Kroes said.
The investigation into FICORA's proposal started in June when the Commission sent the Finnish regulator a letter expressing serious doubts about FICORA's proposal for a regulation on wholesale broadband services through which alternative operators can offer internet services to their own customers (see EUROPE 10638). FICORA wants to regulate two types of such access - “wholesale broadband access”, which is granted at a higher network level, and “network infrastructure access” (also known as “unbundling”), which allows the alternative operator to use a greater part of its own network. In its argumentation, the Commission regrets that FICORA does not call for a realistic regulation based on costs - inevitable to ensure proper functioning of broadband markets in Finland where dominant operators are in a position to charge excessive prices. The Commission recommends that FICORA impose appropriate specific regulatory obligations for wholesale broadband access services below 8 Mb per second.
Before the end of this year the Commission will present a package of measures which will provide durable guidance for broadband access regulation until 2020. These measures will address issues including non-discrimination remedies, network access pricing and the conditions for pricing flexibility for “next generation” wholesale access products. (IL/transl.fl)