I2010 Initiative Elicits Yawns in ICT Sector

Many said i2010 asks the proper questions, said Fabio Colasanti of the Information Society & Media Directorate- Gen. The effort might have been more ambitious, he said, but govts. can’t limit what the private sector must do. “I'm convinced it will help,” Colasanti said.

It’s a “nice map” but “the people aren’t with us,” said European Parliament member Reino Paasilinna. ICT could be democracy’s “savior” by letting Europeans become “real citizens,” he said. But so far, many member states have failed to fulfill requirements set by the e- communications framework. It’s hard to sell the idea of a European Union to citizens, Paasilinna said. If ICT can ease public skepticism, it will be a “revolutionary situation,” he said.

European firms, no matter what their size, don’t show the “pace of innovation,” said Danny Meadows-Klue, co- founder of the Interactive Ad Bureau (Europe). I2010 will give industry and govts. a chance to develop prices, practices and the proper regulatory framework. The glass is “half full,” he said.

“For me, the glass is half empty,” said John Cridland, deputy dir.-gen., Confederation of British Industries: There’s no evidence the i2010 strategy will rev up Europe’s economy in the next 5 years any more than its predecessor did in the first half of the decade. The i2010 effort leaves hanging whether Europe will “continue trundling down the road of over-regulation.”

Path Unclear

ICT represents just over 5% of the EU gross domestic product but accounts for 40% of productivity growth, Information Society & Media Comr. Viviane Reding said. In the U.S., that figure is 60%. The disparity is “not a failure,” but an “opportunity gap” to be bridged, Reding said.

The key to stopping the slide remains elusive, speakers said. They asked rhetorically if the answer is more regulation or less, more flexible spectrum management, more crossborder cooperation among European telecom companies, a combination or something different. There’s a sharp divide between consumers and new entrants, which favor more regulation aimed at constraining incumbents, and those who say competition will flourish only if regulators ease up.

Elements in closing the divide will be a revamp of EU AV policy through scrutiny of the TV without Frontiers directive, and, starting later this year, midterm review of the e-communications regulatory framework. Reding said she'd consider a “regulatory moratorium” if appropriate to allow creation of new next-generation networks (NGNs). She’s expected to unveil a proposal for radio spectrum management this month.

But i2010 won’t necessarily boost regulation, said Office of Communications (Ofcom) Senior Partner Ed Richards, urging telecom regulators to cut rules and design and apply more effective regulatory interventions. Tensions may exist between the EC plan for a more harmonized approach to telecom regulation and regulators’ plans to ease oversight. While Ofcom, like the EC, wants to gauge the new regulatory framework’s efficiency, rules shouldn’t be “harmonized for harmonization’s sake,” Richards said.

Absent from the debate is the concept of using regulation to spur competition, not leveling the playing field, said Ewan Sutherland, exec. dir., International Telecoms Users Group. The ostensibly level playing field some firms seek from regulation usually benefits particular operators and buries the rest, he said.

Sutherland called for a pan-European ICT market whose users can connect to the same services across member states. “Pandering to special interests” won’t accomplish that, he said. His view was shared by Vodafone CEO Arun Sarin. China Mobile has 250 million customers, having added 65 million new subscribers last year alone, he said

- double what Europe’s entire mobile industry. Govts. should support companies who grow beyond national boundaries, he said: “We need European and global champions, not national champions.”

Reding said imminent spectrum management scheme has a ready audience. Several panelists said Europe’s hide- bound method of spectrum allocation and reallocation must be reformed to drive ICT development. Spectrum is the “lifeblood” of the wireless sector, Sarin said, urging the Telecom Council at its Dec. meeting to commit to a date -- perhaps 2010 -- for completing spectrum reform. Spectrum management should be a “cornerstone” of the i2010 agenda, said Ofcom’s Richards.

Most delegates said i2010’s focus should be investment and innovation. By a wide majority they said member states, not the EC, bear the responsibility for carrying out the strategy.