"Massive Investment Must Be Fairly Distributed"… EU Launches Offensive on Network Usage Fees at MWC

Big Tech Targeted in MWC2023 Opening Keynote
"Carriers Cannot Bear Excessive Spending Alone"

[Barcelona=Asia Economy Reporter Oh Su-yeon] "We need to find a funding model to fairly distribute massive investments."

Thierry Breton, European Union (EU) Commissioner for Internal Market, stated this during his keynote speech titled 'Vision of an open future' on the opening day of Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2023 on the 27th (local time).

In the speech, senior officials from the EU and European telecom companies made determined remarks regarding network usage fees. They emphasized the need to reconsider the business models between big tech and telecom companies and to pursue fair distribution.

Commissioner Breton said, "We need to reconsider business models," adding, "Europe intends to consider a funding model fairly distributing resources for large-scale investments in negotiations to ensure fair contributions from telecom companies to the networks demanded by big tech."

Regarding discussions on network usage fees, Commissioner Breton stated, "This is not a binary choice between network operators and traffic-using businesses." He pointed out, "American big tech companies are expanding into the telecom sector by leveraging their market dominance in cloud and platform services, and through their massive cash reserves, they are developing 'Cloud RAN networks' to directly provide services to businesses."

Commissioner Breton said, "To implement faster, cheaper, and more efficient gigabit internet, we announced the 'Gigabit Infrastructure Act' last week," adding, "We need to focus on the future, not the present." Furthermore, he added, "Europe must not miss the opportunity to lead a technological revolution again in the connectivity sector. Just as revolutions have existed in Europe, we must have confidence."

Before Commissioner Breton's keynote, representatives of major European telecom companies also launched an offensive to secure network usage fees through their keynote speeches. Jos? Mar?a ?lvarez-Pallete, CEO of Telef?nica and Chairman of the Board of the Global System for Mobile Communications Association (GSMA), which hosts MWC, said, "Telecom companies deserve a more balanced ecosystem," adding, "The new digital world requires all players to contribute fairly. Fair contributions are necessary, and cooperation with big tech will provide more growth and opportunities."

Christel Heydemann, CEO of Orange, a French telecom company, urged institutionalization so that big tech companies benefiting from internet usage can cover the investments needed for infrastructure, saying, "The current situation is unsustainable for telecom companies, and they cannot bear the excessive expenditures required to meet current traffic demands alone."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.