TELECOMMUNICATIONS : LUXEMBOURG'S REMEDIES FOR BROADBAND MARKET ARE ACCEPTED.

While making certain suggestions, the European Commission agreed in a letter published on 3 November to a measure proposed by Luxembourg giving new market entrants access to the broadband networks developed by EPT (Entreprise des postes et telecommunications), the historic operator.

At the end of September, the telecom regulator Institut luxembourgeois de regulation (ILR) had notified its remedies for the monopoly exercised by the historic operator on this market. It was obliged to do so under the Telecoms Regulation (Article 7), in force since July 2003, requiring the national regulators to analyse their markets, forward the results to the Commission and propose remedies if competition problems exist.

Luxembourg's remedy will oblige EPT to open its broadband network to its competitors, enabling them to provide high-speed connections to end users. The Commission welcomes in particular the possibility for competitors to choose the connection technology for end users regardless of the technology used by EPT (ADSL2, ADSL2+ and VDSL). This provision will "give competitors the possibility to vary their products," explained a spokesman. Under the terms proposed by ILR, bitstream access will also need to be granted by EPT to a future VDSL (very high speed digital subscriber line).

The remedy only concerns wholesale access to networks in Internet Protocol (IP) mode, which is important for private end users because it allows suppliers to offer triple services, ie telephone, internet access and television.

The Commission's letter nonetheless asks the regulator to consider other remedies on the wholesale market if retail prices billed to consumers remain high. It mentions access to broadband in ATM mode, which would allow competitors to provide more varied services to businesses. The Commission adds that monthly fees in Luxembourg for services of 2 megabits per second (Mbps) range from 40 to 50, while elsewhere in Europe they typically range from 15 to 30 and sometimes include additional services such as television or telephony.

Another Commission request is that ILR ensure the development in the near future of stand-alone ADSL, ie broadband access that does not entail the obligation of subscribing to EPT's telephone services.

Luxembourg lags behind on implementation of telecommunications rules. It proposed this measure in the wake of a decision handed down by the EU Court of Justice early in 2005. The Commission notes all the same that its high-speed market is evolving favourably. With 17.6% broadband penetration (subscriptions per inhabitant), the country is above the European average of 14.86%.