European Commission vice-president Andrus Ansip has described the discussion at the Council on the European telecoms code on Friday 9 June as a ‘constructive’ start. A large majority of member states, however stuck to their positions and rejected ‘centralisation’ of the European regulators’ body and an extension of the duration of licences.
European telecoms ministers were asked for their views on the review of EU telecoms regulation (the directive on the code of conduct and the regulation on the European regulators’ body), concentrating on appropriate coordination mechanisms. Two months earlier, fifteen delegations sent a letter to the European Commission denouncing the ‘detailed and complex’ measures laid down in the proposals, which could hinder the development of 5G. Then a group of thirteen countries joined together to oppose extension of the duration of licenses to 25 years.
Strong doubts remain
In their discussions, the ministers repeated, making their arguments clearer than in the past, their opposition to over-rigid measures that brush aside their powers. Portugal and Italy insisted that measures were needed to tackle the digital divide.
More specifically:
Governance. France and Germany, backed by Belgium, again called on the Commission to not turn the Body of European Regulators for Electronic Communications (BEREC) into an EU agency. Many other member states expressed their views about the question of governance. Spain stressed the importance of subsidiarity, the Netherlands opposed a force-of-hand over BEREC, Austria and the Czech Republic supported the status quo in the sense that the existing setup had proved its worth. Greece said BEREC must continue to play its role, perhaps more than in the past, on cross-border issues, but there should not be a change in its structure. Denmark, Spain, Romania and Cyprus said that if there were to be any reinforcement of governance, it should be for the group for policy for the radiospecturm rather than BEREC. Latvia wants a voluntary mechanism for the exchange of good practice, possibly via BEREC.
Duration of licences. France and Germany oppose the 25-year proposal from the Commission. The new French secretary of state for digital affairs, Mounir Mahjoubi, said that given the changes in technology, it was important to not shoot oneself in the foot with over-long licences.
Over-the-top players (OTT). Several member states spoke about including over-the-top players in the directive’s scope of application. Germany demanded the same duties for the same services. Romania suggested simple, flexible and harmonised rules for them. Ireland warned about the impact on companies and start-ups. Poland called for a detailed analysis on the question of access in order to assess the proposal’s objectives.
Optimistic and reassuring noises from the Commission
Commission vice-president Andrus Ansip concluded the meeting by pointing out that his objective was certainly not centralisation of the spectrum. He defended the idea of deeper cooperation in order to provide the market with greater predictability. Such cooperation would be based on decisions by the member states, he said, rather than by the Commission. (Original version in French by Sophie Petitjean)