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EU Ready To Deregulate Local Telecom Markets
In what is being hailed as a major step toward the implementation of the eEurope initiative, the European Union's Parliament voted Thursday to formally adopt a regulatory proposal by the European Commission, the regulatory arm of the EU, for unbundling the local loop, or the "last mile," of telecommunications service in European member states.
The commission's proposal was presented to Parliament in July and follows the endorsement of the European council after its meeting of telecommunication ministers earlier this month.
"The unprecedented speed by which this proposal has been agreed on by all member states and the European Parliament demonstrates the importance of this issue for Europe," said Erkki Liikanen, European Commissioner for Information Society. "The...decision by the European Parliament is a major step in building eEurope. The increased competition means lower Internet access prices for European consumers and a faster roll-out of DSL (digital subscriber line) technologies that will allow faster access at monthly flat rates."
The commission proposed the measure as a response to the conclusions reached at the Lisbon European Council in March 2000, which aimed at getting the whole of Europe online. In order to achieve greater online connectivity, the council called for increased competition in the local telecom markets to reduce costs and enable faster, cheaper Internet access.
In many member states, however, local telecoms still control major market shares, often creating a bottleneck in the distribution of cheaper telecommunication services. Unbundling of the local loop across Europe has been heralded as the key to unleashing competitive pricing among Internet service providers. But some experts argue that it is not the deciding factor and certainly cannot guarantee lower Internet access fees.
"Yes, local-loop unbundling should impact the ability of small and medium enterprises, as well as residential [ones], to have access to high-bandwidth services," said Mary Boswell, director for Europe at the Telecommunication Industry Association. But Boswell argues that long-term and reliable high-speed access will remain an issue of buildup. "The incumbents...may not be willing to build out fiber-optic systems because they are afraid they’ll be investing in something they have to provide to competitors at a cost that will not equal their investment."
The regulations are expected to ease the burden of multiple laws and directives, by harmonizing broad directives across Europe. In many countries, this would be a welcome measure, said Michael Bartholomew, director of the European Telecommunication Network Operators Association, an industry group for 45 major telecommunications companies across Europe.
"Nevertheless, much will depend on implementation of the regulation by national authorities. The prices [that] major operators are allowed to charge for local-loop access will be particularly sensitive," Bartholomew said in a statement. "It is important to ensure that incentives are maintained for investments in new infrastructure, such as fiber links, [that] extend the whole way to individual homes and offices."
Already, several member states have taken steps to change national telecommunications rules to comply with the EU directive by the Jan. 1, 2001, deadline. Ireland's Ministry for Public Enterprise, for example, recently introduced the Communications Regulation Bill to comply with the EU directive. Boswell warns, however, that opening local communications markets to competition will be a work in progress.
"What you'll find, realistically, once you say unbundling needs to take place, [is that] the rate at which that takes place will vary, " Boswell said. "It's not a straightforward issue technology-wise. In the United States, you have the same thing. ... The incumbent carriers tend to continue to fight pricing and billing issues, and that will slow things up in unbundling."
Take Our Privacy, But Don’t Take Our Gambling
In Australia this week, opponents of a moratorium on Internet gambling have said they will take their case to a meeting of state and territory leaders at the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) on Friday.
The COAG will consider the issue of online gambling after the federal government’s push for a ban failed to gain support in the Australian Senate, reports the Sydney Morning Herald. Communication and Information Technology Minister Richard Alston might reintroduce a measure for a moratorium on Internet gambling this week.
But while some industry groups are urging the government to leave the gambling issue alone, a new report indicates that Web sites may not be doing enough keep pace with consumer concerns about online privacy, according to a new study by Andersen Consulting.
The report — similar to the Federal Trade Commission's 1999 study of the privacy practices of U.S. Web sites — looked at the top 100 Web sites in Australia and found that nearly three out of four collect data. Little more than half of those sites actually published a privacy policy. Of the sites with privacy policies, less than 30 percent disclosed how the companies used the information, and one in three Web sites gave users no choice over where the information about them was sent.
Territories in Australia expecting to benefit from e-commerce, meanwhile, should pay attention to how they are preparing to usher in the era of digital commerce. That is the conclusion of another study by Australia's National Office for Information Economy released last Thursday.
The report, "E-commerce Across Australia," confirmed that while the country will be a significant beneficiary of e-commerce within the next two decades, benefits will vary depending on the investment and preparation that regions take in e-commerce infrastructure.
China Strives for WTO
In an effort to honor its commitments as part of the process for gaining entry into the World Trade Organization, China's top legislative body on Tuesday passed draft amendments to laws on foreign-capital enterprises and joint ventures between Chinese and foreign entities on Tuesday, reports The People's Daily.
The draft amendments, passed by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, dissolved articles requiring foreign-funded enterprises to keep balance of their foreign exchanges. It also abolished stipulations requiring foreign-funded enterprises to give preference to Chinese-made raw materials and report their production plans to specified government departments. The amendments "indicate that China is serious about carrying out the commitment it has made on its WTO accession," said Chen Guangyi, chairman of the NPC's Financial and Economic Committee.
In other China news, seven major telecommunications companies are joining forces to build a major fiber-optic cable to link Asian countries to the United States, The People's Daily reported on Monday. China Telecom, a unit of Japan's Nippon Telephone and Telegraph, Korea Telecom, Taiwan's Chunghwa Telecom and the U.S. firm Metromedia Fiber network signed a memorandum of understanding Saturday to bring service to five countries in Asia.
The U.S. cable backbone that would be created under the agreement aims to speed the delivery of high-speed Internet access. The $4 billion venture is the latest development among Asian firms that are racing to connect the region to a global Internet pipeline to the United States. Hong Kong's Pacific Century CyberWorks said earlier this month it would partner with Australia's Telstra to build a global broadband network to link Asia, North America and Europe.
- by Maureen Sirhal
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