Ofcom launches new review of the telecoms market
Industry experts have welcomed the announcement that Ofcom is to carry out a review into the telecoms industry.
The watchdog started its review on 12th March, but has carried out a similar review in the past. The first review resulted in the creation of BT Openreach to separate the access network. It is thought that more separation will not happen as a result of the latest review but it could lead to some deregulation.
There is currently already a shake-up with the industry with both BT and Three attempting to purchase large mobile phone networks. Ofcom is going to find this challenging as it needs to see what the market is going to look like in a few years’ time. The review will need to take the planned mergers into consideration.
Telecoms companies have welcomed the news, with a spokesperson for EE saying that it hopes that the resulting reforms will allow investment in better services. The landscape has changed since the first review and mobile connectivity is now considered to be essential instead of the luxury that it once was. EE has also said that it wants the regulator to look at the way that relationships are changing between the network operators and ‘OTT’ companies that need the operator investment.
The review has also been welcomed by Sky, but it wants Ofcom to further separate BT and its Openreach sector, saying that there is a conflict of interest. Failure to do so would create further problems in the industry.