For the fiber optic network the government thinks of open all infrastructure existing today: fromEnel to Eni, from the Fs to Terna and Anas and to multi-utilities, all network or aqueduct operators they will have to give the availability to lay the cables for the super-fast Internet. Il Sole24 Ore anticipates the contents of the decree which will have to kick off the new plan for digital Italy and which should go to the cabinet between the end of May and the beginning of June. And while the contours of the provision are being fixed at Palazzo Chigi, lo clash on the new network ends up on Giuseppe Vegas' table in Consob.
Telecom Italia (the annual meeting is being held today) has in fact asked Giuseppe Vegas to evaluate the statements of the president of Cassa Depositi regarding the former monopolist's copper network. “In relation to statements reported by some press organs and attributed to Dr. Franco Bassanini, president of CDP and Metroweb Spa, relating to the Group's network, Telecom Italia announces that today it has presented a report to Consob for the Commission's assessment of the decisions under its responsibility” announced a press release yesterday evening.
But what had Bassanini declared? Speaking at the presentation of a book at Luiss, when asked by the agencies about the fiber scenarios and the tug-of-war between the operators, he replied: "Telecom is hesitant to invest in fiber because the new generation network would devalue the value of the twisted pair [ i.e. the old copper network] which, according to what the experts say, is overvalued in the balance sheet of the telephone group: there was a very, very broad evaluation of goodwill”Reuters reported.
In the meantime, the government continues with the communications decree which also provides a trio of incentives to encourage the development of fiber and of the superfast internet: for the end users, some are introduced vouchers linked to the transition to connections above 100 megabytest, tenders are envisaged for the operators for the tax credit and a guarantee fund, for condominiums thefast access to the fiber. The text also contains some measures to support radio and television broadcasting as well as the ban on operating more than 5 national multiplexes on digital terrestrial (a ban already envisaged by Agcom but which here is reinforced with the force of law). The opening of the networks is very wide and would be combined with a cadastre of the "above and subsoil".
Multi-utilities should review broadband "practice" later this month. "At the Utilitalia headquarters at the end of May we will hold a meeting and we will see what to do", announced Giovanni Valotti, president of A2A, in recent days, on the next strategies of multi-utilities, listed and unlisted, on the development of ultra-broadband. Utilitalia is the new association born from the merger between Federutility and Federambiente, and chaired by himself. “I think the government doesn't frown on local utilities getting involved,” he added. As for the role of Enel, “we are working on our project to change and replace digital meters. This is what we do”. This is what Patrizia Grieco, president of the electricity group, limited herself to replying on the sidelines of a visit to the Enel stand at the Milan Expo.
But above all, Vodafone relaunches the game. The group's managing director, Vittorio Colao, in presenting the 2014-15 accounts, confirmed the strategy of accelerating the development of ultra-broadband and declared that "Vodafone is also behind the renewed focus on broadband". Also ready to collaborate with Enel: “Vodafone is working
