The European Telecom Market Authority (ETAM) is part of a new
set of proposals which the Commission wants to replace the EU
Telecoms Rules. Other plans are the strengthening of national
regulators' powers and a re-allocation of radio spectrum to drive
wireless internet access.
The ETAM will ensure "that market rules and consumer regulation
are applied consistently, independently and without protectionism
in all 27 EU Member States," said a Commission statement.
The Commission said that in the market for broadband services
some deregulation still needed to take place. Information Society
Commissioner Viviane Reding said that powerful incumbents coupled
with weak regulation in some countries was stifling
competition.
"Dominant telecoms operators, often still protected by
government authorities, remain in control of critical market
segments, especially of the broadband market," said Reding. "This
restricts consumers' freedom of choice. 10% of EU citizens still
have no broadband access at all. This is why new consumer rights, a
new dose of competition, an effective system of independent
telecoms regulators, new investment into competitive
infrastructures and more space for new wireless services are needed
to put Europe's digital economy on track."
The proposals are the result of consultations begun in 2005.
"Stronger cross-border competition and better access to spectrum,
the raw material of the information society, are indispensable for
sustaining Europe's competitive advantage in the telecoms sector,"
said Reding at the launch of that process.
The proposals include strengthening the hands of national
regulators by giving them the power to split up powerful telecoms
companies. It will give regulators "the new remedy of functional
separation for dominant telecom operators", meaning that they will
be able to force a split of the network part of the businesses from
the parts selling services.
That could have a major effect on the telecoms landscape, where
European companies have been consolidating for years in order to
build pan-European power bases under massive brands such as
Vodafone and Deutsche Telekom.
The plan includes the establishment of new consumer rights such
as the right to call freephone numbers from abroad, the right to
switch telecom provider in just one day and the creation of a
pan-European emergency number, 112.
"Telecoms is a field where our single market can bring about
very concrete results for every citizen in terms of more choice and
lower prices, whether for mobile phones or for broadband internet
connections," said José Manuel Barroso, President of the European
Commission. "At the same time, a single market with 500 million
consumers opens new opportunities for telecoms operators – if
Europe helps to ensure effective competition and consistent rules
of the game. This is why we act today. A more European regulatory
approach is particularly justified in telecoms. After all airwaves
know no borders. And the internet protocol has no nationality."
The Commission also announced that it would cut in half the list
of 18 areas of the telecoms business which are subject to
telco-specific legislation. It has taken services such as local and
national landline telephony out of the list because there is no
longer a need for specific competition regulation, it said.
