Two reasons for one silence. If one were to judge from the slow-down in the press and media in general, the most important European initiative of recent times would be the planned reform of the Europe of Telecommunications, launched by Viviane Reding. The reverberations and reactions come one after the other, in a never-ending stream. Why has this column failed to devote even a single word to it so far? Two reasons.
The first is that the subject is a complex one, and I am not an expert in it. Thanks to the Commission document and the reactions to it, I am learning. The second reason is that I trust the European democratic procedures. There is no dictatorship on high: the debate within the European Parliament will be a public one and the negotiations of of the Council will be transparent. The information agencies have a very bad habit of putting forward a Commission proposal as a decision. One major newspaper published the title (our translation): “Brussels lays down new telecoms rules”, with that vague and threatening Brussels, giving the public the impression of some kind of faceless monster which takes bureaucratic decisions on the rules it is to impose on the people, and the verb lays down, setting in stone what is still no more than a draft; a carefully thought out draft, but a draft nonetheless. There are even university professors who fall into this trap.
Previous successes. It is understandable that not only the national authorities, but also associations and businesses involved in the reform should have their voices heard. But it is not a foregone conclusion that the opponents have right on their side: they defend their interests and the positions they have acquired. We must take a close look at them and consider that before deciding, Ms Reding has consulted all relevant bodies and expertise, and that all of the commissioners have taken part in the discussions. The previous initiative - to reduce tariffs for mobile phone calls abroad - merits a mention. The businesses involved were strongly opposed to this, some of them went as far as to announce that this would be the ruination of them. The regulation was adopted in ten months, which is an absolute European legislative record. The cost of the communications in question fell by some 60%, and I then saw pages and pages of advertisements in the press from telephone companies claiming responsibility for these reductions in order to attract users! Before this, Ms Reding achieved the creation of the internet web address “eu”, which has proved to be a European success. This double reminder is designed simply to point out that Ms Reding does not pitch at windmills, but pursues bold yet realistic European objectives.
A vast and highly sensitive area. The same is true this time. The project is a global one. It is not, on this occasion, a limited specific aspect of telephony (mobile phone calls abroad) which is targeted, but the whole lot of it, and at the same time the television, the radio, other wireless applications, the management of the radio spectrum and the use of frequency bands, the observation of copyright and the fight against piracy. This is a vast area, at the very heart of modern and future civilisation. Provisions are in place for the individual aspects; the ambition, here, is to move to cross-cutting legislation whilst respecting the flexibility required to take account of national circumstances. Presenting the draft, the commissioner stated that the objective is to complete the single market in a field where it does not yet exist, to the advantage of operators and consumers alike. The objective is for the agreement to become reality in the second half of next year, with a view to entry into force early in 2010.
We anticipated the general content in our bulletin 9540, and summarised Ms Reding's presentation to the press last week (bulletin 9542); I refer the reader back to these. Legally, it is a revision of the regulatory framework which entered into force in 2002, with additions, but also radical simplifications. The citizens will benefit from increased choice and lower prices.
The elements which gave rise to the liveliest reactions concern: a) the creation of a European telecoms agency, to be independent, which will not replace the national regulators but will coordinate their activities and remedy certain shortcomings (in particular, it will oversee the entry onto the market of new businesses and services beyond national boundaries) and will be accountable to the European Parliament, although the Commission will maintain political responsibility; b) the functional separation between services and networks within the historic operators (which are opposed to this). It will be decided by the national regulators, each for its own country, depending on the circumstances.
I have, no doubt, oversimplified a highly complex situation. I cannot take position on the most controversial aspects. I have every confidence in the Parliamentary debate and in the negotiations between the Member States to bring me to a clear understanding; I would urge our readers to do the same. (F.R.)