The European Commission wants to ask Big Tech and European Union telecoms providers about their investment outlays and cloud infrastructure plans before tabling legislation that could make the former pay for network costs, a person familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.
Deutsche Telekom, Orange, Telefonica, Telecom Italia, and
the big operators say such a move is all about a fair share contribution as the
six largest content providers account for just over half of data internet
traffic.
Alphabet Inc. unit Google, Netflix Inc., Meta, Amazon.com
Inc. and other tech giants say the idea amounts to an internet traffic tax that
could undermine Europe's net neutrality rules treating all users equally.
The Commission plans to launch a public consultation with a
lengthy questionnaire next week, although the timing may still change, the
person said. It will likely last about 12 weeks before the Commission drafts
legislation that EU countries and EU lawmakers will need to thrash out before
it can become law.
The Commission will ask Big Tech and telecoms what they are
investing in, how this will evolve, and whether there is an investment gap, the
person said.
They will be asked on their views on a shift into cloud
infrastructure and the investments needed for this as regulators want the
debate to go beyond spending on cables and tower.
Regulators also want to know about the relationship between
Big Tech and telecoms providers.
The Commission will ask consultation participants about the
regulatory responses in other parts of the world on network fees, such as in
South Korea and Australia, and the lessons learned from these.
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