EU regulators threw cold water on the European...

it supports the aim of having a single market and ensuring the best conditions for more investment in the sector, but it’s “concerned that the proposed regulation is being rushed through the European legislature without proper explanation and full exploration of its potential consequences.” Among the problems are that the proposal represents a shift away from the current approach of pro-competition rules toward one that favors market consolidation, BEREC said. And the draft regulation would jeopardize the integrity of the EU framework in terms of investment, competition and consumer benefit, it said. It’s “important to bear in mind that the state of the sector in Europe is not quite as bleak as has been suggested,” it said. BEREC also slammed the draft for potentially undermining legal certainty, and for signaling a “substantial shift” in the balance of power among the EC, EU countries and national regulators by centralizing some control at the EU level. BEREC also complained that the EC didn’t consult it or other stakeholders in drafting the package, missing out on the chance to test whether its plan would meet stated objectives or have unintended consequences. BEREC didn’t say anything explicit about the “delicate chapters of the proposal such as spectrum allocation, net neutrality and international roaming,” wrote independent telecom consultant Innocenzo Genna on his radiobruxelleslibera blog (http://bit.ly/1812jah). Regulators may share some general ideas with the EC on these issues but may also have reservations on specific measures, he said. BEREC’s statement “is a very bad signal” for the EC in light of the fact that EU telecom ministers will meet Oct. 24-25, he said. National authorities are reflecting the wider concerns of European governments with respect to the proposal, he said.