Ofcom has finalised how the 2.3 and 3.4GHz spectrum will be awarded and in doing so has decided on two different restrictions on bidders. The auction timetable expects bidding to begin as early as late October 2017, but given the strongly held positions by some in the industry, that looks ambitious.
The end of roaming in the EU
On June 15, 2017 after a decade of imposed price cuts, the premium for using your phone while travelling in the EU is set to disappear for good. While the initial intervention was a bitterly controversial one at the time, it was eventually embraced by operators, many of which ended up going beyond what was required.
US braced for net neutrality shake-up
On 18 May 2017, the FCC will hold an open meeting during which it will consider a range of subjects. The biggest and most contentious relates to ‘restoring internet freedom’ – a vote (which is widely expected to be passed), on rolling back the net neutrality rules. Following the vote, the challenge for the FCC will be to ensure that the repeal will not result in a regulatory vacuum.
New battle lines drawn after a year of setbacks for BT
Q4 and full year 2016/17 was always going to be a difficult set of results for BT given the enormity of the year they’ve had which saw two scandals (with considerable financial consequence), and the end of a protracted battle with the regulator over one of the most important lines of business. While that battle may be over, it’s clear there’s a new one beginning over Ofcom’s wholesale local access market review and investment incentives which looks set to dominate the agenda over the coming months.
The UK’s Digital Economy Bill becomes law just before the election
On 27 April 2017 the Digital Economy Act received its Royal Assent and therefore became law. The bill had been before Parliament since July 2016 and was subject to a number of amendments before being rushed through owing to the general election on 8 June 2017.
Dutch court strikes down regulator's attempt to ban zero rating
On 20 April 2017 a court in the Netherlands ruled that the regulator's ban on price discrimination violates the EU's 2016 net neutrality regulation. The court found that while T-Mobile's zero rating did violate Dutch law, the ban on price discrimination does not apply as the EU's net neutrality regulation should take precedent.
Ofcom tries again with a duct and pole access remedy
Ofcom is now consulting on a revised duct and pole offer to be imposed on BT. This forms part of Ofcom's recent strategic shift to focus on removing potential barriers for providers other than BT to deploy fibre.
Ofcom to regulate wholesale price of fibre for the first time
On 31 March 2017, Ofcom published a number of consultation documents in relation to its Wholesale Local Access Market Review. The three key proposals are for a broadly stable LLU charge control, a new wholesale price control on some of BT's fibre network and tougher quality of service standards for Openreach.
