EU goes soft on Net Neutrality

[Syt]

http://www.wsj.com/articles/eu-agrees-to-scrap-roaming-charges-enshrine-net-neutrality-1435639112

EU Backs Diluted Form of Net Neutrality Law

Cellphone roaming charges would end starting in mid-2017

BRUSSELS—After almost two years of wrangling among lawmakers, the European Union on Tuesday agreed to a watered-down version of a telecommunications law that would scrap cellphone roaming costs in mid-2017 and proposes equal treatment of Internet traffic starting next year, though the law leaves open the option for some exceptions.

The text, agreed to by the European Parliament and the rotating presidency of the EU held by Latvia, still needs to be approved both by the parliament and European governments before being entered into law, but this is considered likely given the informal acceptance of the deal.

Under the new law, the EU wants operators to treat all Web traffic equally, a principle known as net neutrality. But the European law, which would take effect as of April 30 next year, is milder than a law recently introduced in the U.S. because it would allow operators to enter into agreements that ensure a minimum Internet quality for special services, such as video conferencing or surgery, as long as they don't impede Web access for other users. Blocking or restricting Web traffic would also be allowed in some cases, such as to counter cyberattacks or ease the flow of traffic.

"It is important that the Internet remains open and neutral, and we now have rules in place on how traffic is managed, to ensure that there is no anticompetitive behavior," said Vicky Ford, a British Conservative member of parliament who took part in the negotiations.

But critics argue the law is contradictory because it aims to purge Web traffic of all discrimination but simultaneously allows for exceptions to the rule.

"This is very unclear and contradictory—the negotiators seemed to have decided they couldn't decide," said Joe McNamee, executive director of the nonprofit European Digital Rights, or EDRI.

Rewheel analyst Pál Zarándy said it would be net neutrality "in name only" because the rule allows for discrimination.

In its statement, the European Commission, the EU's executive body, said "it is not a question of fast lanes and slow lanes—as paid prioritization is not allowed, but of making sure that all needs are served."

Telecom operators Deutsche Telekom AG and Iliad SA declined to comment directly because they hadn't yet seen the final text of the agreement.

The law also would ban roaming charges across Europe as of June 15, 2017. But under a "fair use policy," operators would be able to prevent roaming abuses, such as if a person lived in one country but registered his mobile phone in a country where subscriptions cost less.

The commission said it has been mandated to now define limits under the fair-use clause.

ETNO, the European Telecommunications Network Operators' Association, said it was crucial that, as the last details are fine-tuned, lawmakers make sure the regulation won't hamper future investment or innovation and that the roaming rules don't distort national markets.

The telecom agreement is a slimmed-down rendition of the initial proposal, unveiled two years ago by the commission, which also had aimed to harmonize the way in which radio-spectrum licenses are granted for wireless Internet connections. But that third of the draft law was hived off after pushback from governments insisting that radio frequencies are national property. Radio spectrum is used for things including mobile-phone communications, television signals and ambulance radio traffic.

The EU still plans to recycle the proposals to overhaul spectrum into the bloc's single-digital-market project, a bundle of 16 initiatives aimed at reigniting growth in the region and that include harmonizing some of the 28 European countries' rules to facilitate buying goods and services online across borders.

"We will build on these important foundations [agreed to on Tuesday] in our forthcoming review of the EU's telecom legislation," EU Digital Commissioner Günther Oettinger said.

It's a bit shameful that in the 2015 EU we're still working with segregated national markets in some areas.

[Archy]

 I agree,

another such market is the Banking Market. All European banks should compete against eachother. To lower ridicilous banking charges 
For a true free market they should also abolish "fair use policy" by the telecomoperators.