The European Union (EU) suggests that companies generating data should contribute to the costs of building and running mobile broadband networks. TechRadar reported that telecom companies are expected to invest in infrastructure and ensure capacity can meet demand, even though a handful of companies outside of the telecom space use the lion’s share of data.
According to one study, Alphabet (Google), Amazon, Apple, Meta (Facebook), Microsoft, and Netflix account for half of the global data traffic. TechRadar reported that many of these companies are not subject to the same regulations as telecom providers yet compete for the same market share.
The EU has long been a proponent of net neutrality rules, and now there’s recognition that the status quo may be “unsustainable.” According to EU commissioner Margrethe Vestager, a more direct form of financial contribution by other players might be necessary.
Other players who generate a lot of traffic “have not been contributing to enabling the investments in the rollout of connectivity,” said Vestager. “And we are in the process of getting a thorough understanding of how that could be enabled.”
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