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EU on USO

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30-05-2005 12:52am

#1

damien

Registered Users Posts: 4,290 ✭✭✭

Join Date: July 2004

Posts: 3578

http://europa.eu.int/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/05/594

There is no need to introduce new legal requirements for mobile and high-speed internet services under the EU’s universal service rules at the moment, says the European Commission in a Communication issued today, but there is a need for but a forward-looking policy debate.

The Universal Service Directive, in place since 2002, seeks to safeguard good e-communications services throughout the EU by dealing with circumstances in which the basic consumer needs are not satisfactorily met by the market. This means the possibility to impose financial cross-subsidies from one group of customers to another.

The review Communication issued today finds that consumers already have widespread affordable access to mobile communications, so universal service obligations would not benefit the consumer. And so far only a small – although fast-growing – minority has a high-speed (broadband) internet connection, so subjecting broadband to universal service obligations would result in unfair financial transfers between consumers. However, in the future, as services traditionally carried by telephone networks become more and more internet-based, the focus of universal service may evolve towards providing an affordable broadband access link for all.

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