Brussels, 20/07/2016 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission has, without any great conviction, lifted its objections, thereby allowing Deutsche Telekom to upgrade its network using vectoring technology. On Tuesday 19 July, the Commission approved the revised proposals from the German regulatory authority, BNetzA, but has called for fresh guarantees on competition. Alternative operators do not seem persuaded.
At the start of April, BNetzA gave its approval for Deutsche Telekom to upgrade its network using vectoring technology. This technology uses existing copper networks rather than deploying new fibre optic networks to increase broadband speeds. In the light of Commission remarks, however, BNetzA elected to withdraw and revise its regulatory proposal.
It was this new version, which proposes granting access to ducts and dark fibre for a period of two years to those alternative operators currently present at the local exchange, which was approved by the Commission on 19 July. However, the Commission has called on the German regulator to make improvements to plans for the virtual access product. “The Commission requires BNetzA to ensure that competitors have an adequate and alternative means of offering internet access to customers” and has called on BNetzA “to improve their plans concerning the technical specifications for the main replacement product (a Layer-2 virtual access product)”, a press release states.
Responding to the announcement, the European Competitive Telecommunication Association (ECTA) says that the new measures neither promote nor protect competition. On the contrary, it says, they give historic operators an unwarranted advantage by removing physical unbundling. It hopes that the Commission will ensure that its additional requests are effected. (Original version in French by Sophie Petitjean)