[wsfii-discuss] EU comission survey about NGA

Mon Sep 29 06:57:32 UTC 2008

With due respect to the far-seeing nabobs of the EU, who clearly want nothing but egalitarianism to rule, this statement of the EU Telecoms Commissioner (from the press release) makes me sit up and wonder a bit: "We want to reduce the scope for divergences of
regulatory approaches across Europe, in the interest of legal certainty.
Uncoordinated or even contradictory action of national regulators as regards
Next Generation Networks could seriously damage competition and undermine
Europe's single market. We propose in particular that project-specific risk
premiums should be applied, so that competition can flourish while those who
invest are rewarded in line with the risks they have incurred."

While undoubtedly it is very easy to put down in black and white (and red, if that is what they claim) the costs incurred by a telco, I submit this is neither as easy, nor as equitable, for a 'free' community based service. Who will 'value' the hours put in by volunteers to keep the networks running, the software such high quality, the time spent to attend camps (some of which are held outside the EU, but are none the less vital for that) to update knowledge? Should (and will) each 'nodal' homeowner's investments in hardware and 'uncompensated' donation of real estate to mount antennae etc be equally well accounted? Will a millionaire's home or farmhouse have the same notional value as a council house roof? 

Is it even desirable that such community-based initatives for the common good be ranked on the same platform as profit-making businesses? Is the end-objective sufficiently clear?

Should an approach that, upfront, touts 'competition' and 'risky investments' as the rationale for standard-setting, be supported by a community initiative and by community movements? Wasn't this fundamental dichotomy one of the reasons to be suspicious of 'free-beer' proprietary networks?  

And while we examine Ms Reding's statement for its risibility, shouldn't we also insist that the difference between 'premiums' and 'premia' be clarified? Hopefully, from such pettifogging will the fog clear.

Finally, Ramon asked for a consensual approach within and between communities in the EU. I do hope that whatever emerges from this potential submission, the positive side of a regional consensus will be reflected in other parts of the world, especially Asia and Africa, where 'outside' telcos wield a powerful influence on telecom structures. 

 Vickram
http://communicall.wordpress.com
http://vvcrishna.wordpress.com

----- Original Message ----
From: Ramon Roca <ramon.roca at guifi.net>
To: Discuss list on the World Summit on Free Information Infrastructure <wsfii-discuss at lists.okfn.org>
Sent: Monday, 29 September, 2008 2:43:17
Subject: [wsfii-discuss] EU comission survey about NGA

http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/08/1370&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en

We're thinking on the convienience for giving our feedback on this.
Although until now we've been primarily working in providing a last mile 
access based on wireless, we think that we could have something to say 
here. Although many of us have been building infraestructures which 
provides internet, the internet itself is coming in many cases through 
conventional ISPs because of municipalities or individuals who sahre 
their internet.
Would make sense that once built a last mile infrastructure with a 
self-service/community we don't have to be discriminated for not being a 
conventional telco operator, and we should be granted to access to the 
internet as well, so could make sense to make a petition to the EU 
commission asking for establishing a way for enabling this.

I would like to know if it can be done together with other communities 
within the EU.

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