Telecommunications will provide much for the Commission to do after the summer break. According to a document seen by EUROPE, the Commission intends to bring forward proposals on Tuesday 13 September that would make disruptive operators subject to security and confidentiality requirements and would encourage joint investment in fibre optic.
As Commissioner Andrus Ansip promised, each month will see proposal(s) brought forward to build a genuine digital single market. September will see the presentation of the reform of the telecoms rules, an action plan for developing 5G and a strategy for the development of a gigabyte society. A second round of proposals on copyright will follow the next week (EUROPE 11558).
Telecoms rules are structured around a plethora of directives, such as the framework directive (2002/21/EC) and the authorisation (2002/20/EC), access (2002/19/EC), universal service (2002/22/EC) and the privacy and electronic communications (2002/58/EC) directives. The hard core of directives was complemented (then revised in 2009) by further instruments, such as the BEREC (Body of European Regulators for Electronic Communications) regulation (1211/2009) and the regulation on roaming charges (717/2007).
According to the draft impact study on the reform of telecoms rules of which EUROPE has had sight, the Commission is preparing to propose several adjustments in order to improve investment conditions in the landline network. The preferred option (i.e. option 3 – NGA+ – of the four options considered), would separate copper and fibre optic networks: the access requirements will be retained for both types of infrastructure but joint investment agreements in fibre optic will be encouraged. More generally, the Commission will seek to grant greater importance to commercial access agreements. The draft impact assessment gives no indication, however, as to whether or to what extent commercial access agreement will take precedence over access rules. In principle, this should not be the case.
A further adjustment planned is in the frequency of market analyses, which will take place every five years rather than every three years, as at present. In addition, the Commission could propose to base the analysis more on the retail than on the wholesale market, without setting out the criteria to be used to gauge how competitive the market is. Its draft impact assessment notes, however, that these measures will impact negatively on small entrants dependent on wholesale access.
Among the other changes, the Commission is likely to propose extending the duration to a minimum of 25 years, as is the case in the United Kingdom at present. It is also expected to toughen requirements on disruptive operators which use the internet network to undercut traditional telecoms service provision (OTT). According to the draft impact study, OTT services should comply with requirements in terms of security and confidentiality and also content portability. OTT services which use numbers (such as Skype, Viber and Google voice) will, additionally, be made subject to interoperability, interconnection, portability and access to emergency services requirements.
Gigabyte and 5G. The reform of telecoms rules, which will be presented in Strasbourg on 13 September, will be accompanied by two other documents: an action plan for development of 5G from 2020 and a communication on developing a gigabyte society.
The action plan will call for coordinated investment in the next generation of 5G networks from 2020. It will argue for swift and coordinated introduction of 5G infrastructure in all member states and will set up a European market for 5G goods and services. This will involve making frequencies available, sectoral roadmaps, coordination of national plans, including on those areas linked to investment, a series of pilot projects the role of which will be to speed up the process for vertical industries and a common vision of 5G standards.
The communication on a gigabyte society will list what will have to be done so that everyone in the EU can connect to internet with a speed of 100 Megabits per second (Mbps) by 2025 (the 2010 digital strategy for Europe set a target of 30 Mbps by 2020). It will suggest, for example, giving greater powers to national regulators that will allow them to take action against dominant operators which fail to abide by their commitments. It will also underline the need for public funding: according to a draft text which EUROPE has seen, investment of close to €155 billion is still needed to construct rapid internet networks. (Original version in French by Sophie Petitjean)