EU champions fibre over copper

broadband targets, said the digital agenda commissioner on Monday, PC World reports.

Vice-president Neelie Kroes made the comments as she announced a public consultation on the pricing of wholesale access to broadband networks. “We need next-generation networks to deliver the bandwidth-hungry services and applications that will drive future growth. No one disputes that need. But there is no agreement on how to foster the deployment of such networks. Unfortunately, we see that, for the time-being, telecoms companies are hesitant to commit significant funds to fibre roll-out,” she said.

According to Comms Express, Kroes said improving the infrastructure, for example by installing fibre cables, could contribute to getting the European economy back on track.

She observed that broadband penetration of 10% has been linked to an annual gross domestic product growth of between 0.9% and 1.5% as businesses and consumers benefit from being able to plug in Ethernet cables and access faster networks.

Business Week states that to catch up to leading countries such as South Korea, the European Commission has called for 50% of European households to have Internet connections above 100Mbps by 2020, about 10 or 20 times typical current speeds. The body has proposed using some of the EU's structural funds, which pay for infrastructure in poorer member states, to finance broadband development in certain areas, and called for faster release of unused bands of radio spectrum.

While some former monopolies attacked Kroes' plans as unwanted regulatory interference, operators that did not inherit a network supported her plans, and said the European Commission needs to reassess how access prices are calculated.