Aphaia Chief Consultant Dr Boštjan Makarovič reviewed for the newspaper Delo the plans of the Slovene incumbent telecoms operator Telekom Slovenije to cover the country with broadband.
In Matjaž Ropret’s article from 16 June Dr Makarovič commented on Telekom Slovenije’s proposal of establishing a pan-Slovene broadband network to be created on the basis of the updated copper telephone network and 4th generation mobile telephony.
In Slovenia and elsewhere the regulated cost-oriented prices for both retail telephone subscriptions and the wholesale (operator) lease of the local loop include the deprecation of copper, said Dr Marakovič, even though after the end of the depreciation period said copper had usually never been replaced. If regular infrastructure updates were to take precedent before payment of dividend, then, in line with the Modern Equivalent Asset (MEA) principle, European telecoms companies, Slovene included, would have at their disposal significantly more fibre in access networks as they actually do.
Makarovič warns that symmetrical regulation, advocated by Telekom, which would open alternative operator networks to competition, will drive away potential investors in new networks.
Functional separation of Telekom’s retail section from its network would be best, adds Aphaia’s Chief Consultant, as the current ‘behaviour-based’ regulation is underperforming even in countries with a higher level of business and legal certainty than that of Slovenia.
