9th February , 2004

Europe : In short: The Commission has presented its new strategy for the further take-off of high speed Internet and third generation mobile phones (3G). The correct transposition by Member States of the new regulatory framework is still the top priority.

Background: The roll-out of high-speed Internet connections using broadband technologies was highlighted as a top priority in the e-Europe 2005 Action Plan endorsed by EU leaders in 2002. The Communication by the Commission on 3 February identifies the next steps in the process, and turns the spotlight on EU governments to meet their political commitments at the forthcoming European Spring summit.

Issues: After several years of economic downturn and the consequent need for restructuring, the Commission thinks the ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) sector is now ready to surf the wave of growth again. However, it believes further growth can only be achieved by channelling more financial resources into the sector and by developing new services. An example of a new service would be to develop audiovisual content on mobile phones using third generation mobile technology (3G). It identified four priority areas to achieve this aim:

Regulation: The Commission issued finals warnings late last year to seven Member States for failing to transpose the new 'regulatory framework for electronic communications' correctly (see EurActiv, 18 December 2003). Full and effective transposition of these rules by all Member States remains the top priority in 2004 for the Commission. In parallel, measures to boost competition in the telecoms sector (so-called 'remedies') are currently being discussed with telecom operators (see EurActiv, 28 January 2004). Guidelines for National Regulatory Authorities are to be published before the Spring summit.

Geographical coverage: National strategies to make broadband accessible even in remote areas were to be presented by Member States at the beginning of this year. Here too, the Commission points at those Member States (six in total) who have fallen short of their commitment to bridge the so-called 'digital divide' between underserved regions and those with high coverage. A report on the national broadband strategies is due before the summer.

Demand stimulation: To the Commission, user take-up is set to become the biggest issue facing broadband after roll-out sharply increased last year. It believes competition should start to focus on the networks rather than on the services delivered to customers so that prices come down further.

3G: The successful launch of third generation mobile handsets (3G) - which can carry new applications such as audiovisual content - is holding much of the Commission's hopes for the telecoms sector in the coming years. Discussions are ongoing with industry as to what measures (regulatory, technical and commercial) should be taken to boost this sector. An enquiry launched recently by the Commission has started to look into the availability of key audiovisual content such as sports over the Internet and 3G (see EurActiv, 2 February 2004). The idea is to move from voice exchange to data exchange over mobile handsets.
Next steps:

March 2004: Commission to publish guidelines on measures ('remedies') to be imposed on telecoms operators enjoying significant market power
25-26 March: Spring European summit
May 2004: Commission report on national broadband strategies
July 2004: Commission Communication on 3G
By summer 2004: Mid-term review of the e-Europe 2005 Action Plan

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