The halls were packed, the production value was high and the on-site catering was expensive: in short, there were very few surprises
MWC25: Regulation & Policy roundup from Day 1
Familiar calls for deregulation and consolidation to help spur investment alongside debates over fair share and the governance of AI set the tone for the first day of the event
The changing ownership of former incumbents
As some European governments are reducing shares in domestic operators, others are actively raising their stakes, often to protect strategic national assets
Spain: Deregulating wholesale central and local access
Fibre network competition and the entry of new players has removed the need for wholesale broadband regulation, but Telefónica’s physical infrastructure remains a bottleneck
Event debrief: Europe’s digital independence and the role of connectivity
As support for tech investment and sovereignty grows, there is a reminder that long-heard calls for regulatory reforms have not yet been answered
Replicating Telefónica's fibre broadband services in Spain
The CNMC looks to adopt a more flexible approach to its economic replicability test, reflecting the EC’s Gigabit Recommendation and recent M&A activity in the market
Germany: Long-awaited restrictions on Huawei and ZTE
Mobile operators have agreed to phase out the firms from their 5G networks, with almost 20 other countries already having imposed restrictions on equipment vendors
EC: Protecting competition in a changing world
DG COMP research shows that mobile prices in the EU are consistently lower than in the US, but that consolidation tends to increase prices and may not deliver greater investment
Spain's strategic investment in Telefónica
While some European countries already hold minority stakes in national operators, this move is a clear attempt to moderate the influence of foreign actors in key industries
Event debrief: BEREC’s 12th Stakeholder Forum
While the EC’s digital infrastructure white paper took centre stage, speakers also highlighted the increasing criticality of ensuring network security and resilience
