Trilogue agreement on the European Code of Electronic Communications was reached in Brussels. Investments in very high capacity networks (together with competition, the Single Market and benefits for consumers) thus become priorities, according to the new European legislation. The European Union identifies them as strategic for Europe's growth and competitiveness, for the modernization of welfare, for training and research. The agreement regulates the investment models that can favor the development of fiber optic networks by providing for more favorable regulation for wholesale-only operators (such as, in Italy, Open Fiber) compared to vertically integrated operators.
The agreement reached between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission is "very important also for Italy", said the president of Open Fiber Franco Bassanini, “The agreement constitutes an important step forward in the modernization of the European regulatory framework for telecommunications because recognizes the urgent need for infrastructure investment, with particular attention to all-fiber networks (FTTH - Fiber To The Home), the only ones that ensure the performance required by the Gigabit Society in the coming years in terms of access speed, reliability, latency, low maintenance and energy costs; fiber networks are also the basic infrastructure of mobile TLCs, with the new 5G standard.
“The new code – added Bassanini _ governs the model for the first time Wholesale only creating the better conditions for the development of pure infrastructure operators, which are dedicated to the development of networks to which all interested operators can access on an equal and non-discriminatory basis. The wholesale-only operator, with no retail business unit, can devote himself entirely to the development of an increasingly performing network to be offered in particular to other TLC operators who are seen exclusively as customers and not as competitors. This regulatory evolution allows for a more rapid change in the direction of the Gigabit society, creating the conditions for a more pervasive digitization and greater competitiveness of the economy".
“The decision of the European institutions to accelerate the development of wholesale only through favorable regulation represents an important confirmation on a continental level of the validity of the business model chosen by Open Fiber” concludes Bassanini. “We hope that the new framework will be accepted by the new government as a priority, to allow Italy to be at the forefront in the construction of fiber optic infrastructure and accelerate the digital evolution, at the service of families and businesses".
