Differing opinions on telecoms regulation
Opinions of the role of regulation in the telecommunications market remains divided. While regulators described themselves happy with the latest round of regulation, some leading figures in the industry have complained about the effects of regulation. The independent regulators group (IRG), which comprises 19 telecommunications regulators from all over Europe, gave a cautious welcome to the new guidelines on market analysis that were adopted by the Commission on 9 July. Saying that more time was needed to study the details of the guidelines, which clarify significant market power for electronic communications, the IRG did nonetheless say that the guidelines would bring consistency to the application of rules and regulations by the national regulators. In the same week however, Heinz Sundt, the Chief executive officer of Telekom Austria AG, claimed that present regulation of telecommunications firms, particularly in broadband, has failed to encourage innovation or investment, and that this will have an impact on whether the EU can reach its Lisbon Council target of being the most competitive knowledge-based economy by 2010. 'Europe needs harmonised regulation set up with clear objective of catalysing broadband infrastructure innovation and investment, both in the fixed and wireless sectors...to achieve this, the EU's strategy should be to regulate those markets where competition does not exist and phase out regulation where competition works well,' he said. Added weight was given to this speech by the findings of the Austrian institute of economic research, WIFO, which published a study stating that additional regulation would inhibit innovation.
Kraje
Austria