Ireland’s telecoms regulator ComReg has told the country’s incumbent former monopoly Eircom that it must make any new fibre-optic networks it deploys available to alternative operators. In a ruling yesterday, ComReg adjudged that Eircom has significant market power (SMP) in the area of fibre, and for its part the carrier has said it welcomes the decision and will work with other operators on wholesale access for access to its new fibre network. ‘Eircom welcomes the regulatory certainty for our fibre investment provided by today’s decision. The network is a critical investment for Eircom and Ireland … We now will work with ComReg and [the] industry to launch services as quickly as possible,’ Eircom said.
ComReg’s two rulings, which designate Eircom as holding SMP in the areas of wholesale physical network infrastructure and wholesale broadband access, mirror evolving European policy for next generation broadband technologies.