Regulatory “holidays” won’t spur investment in new broadband networks, European...

to become monopolies again or letting mobile operators charge excessive termination or roaming rates unrelated to costs -- will give big telcos a break from trying to innovate in a competitive market, she said. But the answer is to give consumers more choice, not less, by unblocking broadband bottlenecks, she said. Markets must be as open as possible and competition stimulated in every link of the value chain, she said. That applies to the fixed networks of dominant players, where alternative operators should be allowed to deploy their own equipment in order to offer competitive new services, she said. That requires effective unbundled access at fair prices and non-discriminatory terms, she said. It’s “ironic” that some criticize EU pro-competitive regulation, caricaturing it as enabling resellers to free-ride on others’ investment, she said. Those same people often push for removal of unbundling obligations on major players, limiting competition in the broadband value chain to bitstream “resellers,” she said. “I don’t believe in ‘managed competition,'” Kroes said. The same goes for mobile termination rates, she said. They should reflect the real costs of efficient operators and promote consumer welfare, she said. Those who oppose a pro-competitive approach claim it takes away investment incentives, but it doesn’t, she said. Instead, if such networks are open to new players, consumers will be willing to pay a fair price for enhanced services, she said. It’s that increased demand for more innovative services that will sustain investment in new networks, she said. But “I don’t believe in regulation for the sake of it,” she said. In some areas a lighter touch is better, which is why the European Commission is reviewing the current list of regulated e-communications markets to see if anticipatory rules are no longer needed, she said. Meeting EU goals for higher-speed broadband by 2020 requires competition via a mix of technologies, and here the cable industry has already shown its versatility, she said. Upgrading cable networks has already boosted broadband speeds for relatively little cost and has helped get more consumers online with faster access, she said. With cable, more than 60 million households can already get speeds of 100 Mbps or higher, she said. But the EU is doing more to spark investment by trying to reduce the risk associated with broadband projects; reviewing state aid laws to make it easier to support broadband investment with public funding; and supporting content proposals such as Connected TV, which will let consumers combine TV programs with Internet and online services, she said. Kroes urged the cable sector to support cloud computing, “because it’s where the future will be."