Deutsche Telekom (DT) has a new CEO, which could spur an already ...

resigned “in the interests of the company,” replaced Mon. by Rene Obermann, a member of DT’s management board and CEO of T-Mobile International, DT said. Naming a skilled “hands-on” manager could signal stronger lobbying by DT, and raises questions about whether Germany is ready to buck the EC on the eve of assuming the EU Presidency, Spies said. Germany proposed waiving DT from regulation for new services. That has drawn sharp criticism from Information Society & Media Comr. Viviane Reding, who said giving DT a regulatory break could sap the telecom market as a European economic engine. Other countries are scrutinizing the debate. France Telecom (FT) is “fighting for a regulatory holiday, but is using a more subtle, politically correct language than DT,” said Paris-based telecom attorney Winston Maxwell. FT is willing to make its ducts -- plastic tubes that run under streets -- available to competitors wanting to string their own fiber and compete with the incumbent, he said. The telco also has said it’s willing to consider sharing internal cabling of building if other operators have the same obligation.