Europe (Western) - Telecoms, Mobile & Broadband Overview and Analysis 2004

Synopsis

The telecommunications market in Western Europe began to recover in 2003 after a steep decline, and near collapse of some major operators, in 2001-2002. 2003 also saw the arrival of the European Union’s New Regulatory Framework, designed to further standardise and liberalise the regulatory environment for electronic communications among the member states of the EU. Countries which had not formally acceded to the EU, such as Switzerland, Norway and Iceland, passed new telecommunications legislation to remain in step with the general flow of regulation. 2003 also saw the beginning of a real acceleration in the pace of broadband adoption, with ADSL providing the bulk of growth as incumbents began to seriously push the service. Cable broadband continued to be significant, in particular as networks were slowly digitised. Other broadband options – particularly Fibre-to-the-Home (FTTH) – also achieved commercial prominence in some states in 2003 and 2004, looking set for further growth in 2005. Mobile growth continued to be the other main driver of the market, with subscriber numbers expanding and the deployment of the first commercial 3G services in 2003 and 2004.