At a time when the EU says it wants to put European competitiveness back at the heart of its agenda for the next legislature, the French Telecoms Federation (Fédération française des télécoms, or FFT) has published its priorities for the telecoms sector, highlighting the obsolescence of current regulations in the face of EU objectives.
In its manifesto published on 9 April, the FFT details the “crucial role” of European operators in “realising the European Union’s ambitions in terms of connectivity, digital leadership and economic and industrial competitiveness”.
According to the federation, which brings together 19 national operators including Bouygues and Orange, “the European Union needs to adopt an approach that breaks with the current regulatory framework and stimulates investment and innovation”.
The manifesto sets out 14 major proposals, including the reduction of administrative procedures and taxes, the introduction of eco-design measures for digital services, and the harmonisation of regulations at European level.
The federation also criticizes the “constraints” weighing on businesses, taking as an example the future law on payment periods (see EUROPE 13366/5), and would like the Commission to launch “a reassessment of existing sectoral rules [...] to ensure that they meet current market challenges and are not redundant, contradictory or obsolete”.
In February, the Commission presented its ‘White Paper’ on the future of European telecommunications, paving the way for a future overhaul of legislation (see EUROPE 13355/8).
See the FFT’s manifesto (in French): https://aeur.eu/f/bor (Original version in French by Isalia Stieffatre)