Europe’s telecoms chiefs want tech giants to help fund network costs

Most companies operating in the European telecommunications industry have asked large technology companies to contribute to the cost of rolling out fibre and 5G on the continent, as they report that the current situation is no longer sustainable.

Next-generation networks may offer revenue-generating opportunities, but telecom companies claim that services such as Netflix, Facebook, and YouTube benefit greatly in network infrastructure, without sharing the effort, risk, and expense of construction.

In a letter obtained by Reuters, the CEOs of Telefonica, Orange, KPN, BT, Telekom Austria, Vivacom, Proximus, Telenor, Altice Portugal, Telia, and Swisscom stated:

A large and increasing part of network traffic is generated and monetized by big tech platforms, but it requires continuous, intensive network investment and planning by the telecommunications sector. This model – which enables EU citizens to enjoy the fruits of the digital transformation – can only be sustainable if such big tech platforms also contribute fairly to network costs.