The European Union will try to bring in broadband access for everyone by 2010, with the widespread take-up of high-speed internet bringing forward an investigation into the area.
The EU’s Telecoms commissioner, and an increasingly familiar figure, Vivian Reding believes that offering citizens broadband services is essential.
“High-speed internet is the passport to the Information Society and an essential condition for economic growth,” said Viviane Reding, EU Telecoms Commissioner in a statement announcing the review.
“This is why it is this Commission’s policy to make broadband internet for all Europeans happen by 2010.”
USO lucky
It appears that the current wording of the EU’s Universal Services Obligations (USO) are likely in its three-year review, which could force telecoms firms to roll out their coverage to outlying areas that are not currently able to get the faster internet action.
The USO currently calls for all member states to offer ‘functional internet access’ which was taken to mean a line that can support 28.8 kilobits per second.
Obviously, in the modern connected world this dial-up rate is far from ideal, and with 36% of EU households already enjoying broadband speeds the review of the USO may well be reworded to ensure that internet access does not mean narrow-band.
This could cause major problems in less developed nations – with the likes of Romania currently only offering a 40% coverage of the nation.
By Patrick Goss
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