According to figures available to Michael Bartholomew, the director of ETNO, the European association that speaks for the former telecoms monopolies, building ultra-fast telecoms networks across Europe will cost up to €300 billion over 15 years.

Why has the deployment of these networks become a priority?

Very simply, because we need to meet consumer demand for innovative new services that will require more and more high-speed capacity. To give just one example, data traffic has to rise from 100 to 600 exabytes a year [one exabyte, a unit used to measure internet traffic, is equivalent to one billion gigabits - Ed] by 2015. The new networks are at the heart of the Digital Agenda’s priorities, which is why the Commission’s recommendation, which we are awaiting, will be crucial for defining regulation principles at EU level.

What new services can be expected?

For consumers, the new services will include high-definition video, simultaneous video services, video blogs, network data storage services, network applications and so on. For businesses, they will include far more advanced video conference and telework systems, solutions for collaboration via networks and cloud computing. Certain video conference services are already available, but certainly not in high definition. All these services are on hold because we don’t have ultra-fast networks. There are also more and more users, which is another reason why we need these networks. They create new opportunities in other sectors, such as education and health (for example, remote diagnostics, monitoring systems for patients with chronic illnesses and assistance systems).

But there’s no guarantee that demand will follow…

These investments are indeed very risky. That is why we are awaiting the Commission’s recommendations [on regulation of the new networks], which take this risk into account. Traffic will increase tremendously, however. Just look at the success of the iPad and the iPhone. All these tools require more and more bandwidth and today’s networks are simply incapable of coping with this level of traffic. So it is urgent to shift into higher gear, as other regions of the world have done, and without delay. The deployment of ultra-fast networks will rely on a combination of private investment, technologies and platforms in terms of commercial and technical means. With all this technological progress, mobile services and wireless networks will increasingly compete with fixed networks and play a major role in bridging the digital divide between cities [which have good broadband coverage - Ed] and rural or isolated regions.

Data traffic has to rise from 100 to 600 exabytes a year