Brussels plans to shake up telecoms market

Brussels will call for a "level playing field" between telecoms groups and online rivals such as WhatsApp and Skype next month, putting Europe's regulators on a collision course with US companies once again.

The European Commission is set to launch reforms of everything from telecoms to media to online shopping as part of plans for a "digital single market" within the EU on May 6.

Companies that provide over-the-top content - which let people have free voice calls and messages over the internet - are "not subject to the same rules" as traditional telecoms company, argues the commission in a draft document seen by the FT.

The move will be welcomed by large European telecoms groups that have long claimed these services benefit from less stringent regulation. But it will also add fuel to accusations that the EU favours European operators over their US peers.

Technology regulation in Brussels came under the spotlight last week after the commission launched an antitrust case against Google, following nearly five years of back-and-forth negotiations between the company, its rivals and the regulator. This year, Barack Obama accused European regulators of protectionism - charges that the commission denied.

Alongside "ambitious" telecoms reforms, the commission has also promised a "comprehensive investigation" into platforms such as Amazon and Google, to look at how they display search results and use customer data. In the document, the commission writes that the "growing market power of some online platforms" is "potentially raising concerns".

Other measures discussed include simplifying the removal of illegal content from the internet and wide-ranging copyright reforms.

Andrus Ansip, the commissioner overseeing the plan, last month outlined ways to eliminate tactics such as geoblocking, which stops customers in one country using websites or watching media or buying goods online in another.

The commission's plan to reform telecoms regulation comes as its long-running attempt to get rid of roaming charges and introduce some form of "net neutrality" - whereby all internet traffic must be treated equally - enters its final stages.

In the document, the commission acknowledges the shortcomings of the last attempt to create a digital single market. It says that attempt became too focused on net neutrality and roaming in spite of the wider ambitions to drive investment and innovation by Neelie Kroes, the former digital commissioner.

The commission wants to help develop a pan-European telecoms industry through reforms of regulations and investment incentives for high speed broadband networks.

Steven Tas, chairman of Etno, which represents Europe's leading telecom operators, said: "Boardrooms feel an urgent need for in-depth reforms that stimulate investments in high speed broadband networks. Investment is crucial for the competitiveness of Europe in the global economy."

The EU's executive arm plans to better co-ordinate the regional auctions of mobile spectrum, which is crucial to supporting the next generation of mobile internet services. The commission is clear that the proceeds from the sale of the spectrum to mobile groups should remain with the member states.

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