Telecom regulators revamp

National telecoms regulators are today (12 October) announcing a revamp of their collective organisation in a bid to ward off a threat from the European Commission to create an EU super regulator.

The European Regulators Group (ERG), which represents national regulators in the EU, is to increase its benchmarking activities to promote more uniform behaviour in the oversight of markets.

Information Society Commissioner Viviane Reding, who is dissatisfied with the regulators’ performance, is concerned that member states are making only slow progress in opening up their telecoms markets. The Commission included proposals for an EU ‘super regulator’ in June in its review of the regulatory framework for e-communications networks and services. The framework was introduced in 2002 to promote market competitiveness, but some countries, notably Germany, have been slow to liberalise their markets.

ERG chairman Kip Meek described efforts being made as "the reverse of an attempt to build a single European regulator which, at least for the moment, would run the risk of overly prescriptive and intrusive harmonisation". Meek argued that the Commission’s threats were premature given that the ERG was still a developing body that had not yet attained its full potential in terms of harmonisation of national regulators.

Reding indicated yesterday (11 October) that she was still giving the idea of a super regulator serious consideration. She expressed her exasperation with proposals currently being discussed by the German parliament to introduce legal protection for national champion Deutsche Telekom. The structure of the ‘super regulator’ has been compared to the European Central Bank, which sets eurozone interest rates.

The ERG’s drive to acquire more credibility comes shortly before a deadline later this month (27 October) for contributions to the Commission’s call for input on the framework review. "Recent moves by the ERG to encourage targeted harmonisation are all about more effective collaboration between national regulators," said Meek. The group will be giving priority later this year to access to broadband markets. It also plans to pay special attention to regulation of next generation services such as Voice over Internet Protocol.

National telecoms regulators are today (12 October) announcing a revamp of their collective organisation in a bid to ward off a threat from the European Commission to create an EU super regulator.