Sharing investment risk in next-generation access networks should...

as long as competition and non-discrimination are maintained. They asked the European Commission to develop a broadband strategy by the end of 2009. The decision sent a “strong signal” that current e-communications rules need revamping in order to speed deployment of new networks, the European Telecommunications Network Operators’ Association said. It urged policymakers to ensure that provisions encouraging next-generation access investment are part of the telecom package now under review. Alternative providers have always recognized that voluntary agreements between operators on access conditions should be possible, but “this does not replace the need for regulators” to act to promote competition, said European Competitive Telecommunications Association Regulatory Affairs Director Ilsa Godlovitch. The council’s emphasis on maintaining competition and the principle of non-discrimination while rewarding risk strikes “a fair balance on these issues,” she said. Meanwhile, cable operators and national and EU regulators said stable, pan-EU rules are needed to boost competition and innovation in the sector. Uniform regulations are needed to enable investment, but operators at the Cable Congress in Berlin said they want a “minimal level” applied throughout the region, not nation- specific rules, Cable Europe said. Economic regulation should promote competition and avoid abuse of market power, said organization President Manuel Kohnstamm. The main reason incumbent operators need to upgrade to fiber is because cable competes with speeds of 100 Mbps and above, “not because regulators ask them to,” he said. Cable Europe said it wants to help the EC define optimal levels of regulation on policies such as child protection, privacy and intellectual property protection and service delivery quality.