The Supervisory Body for Equal Access to the TIM network (OdV), set up by the Authority for guarantees in communications – an independent body that has the task of supervising compliance by TIM with the regulatory obligations of equal treatment – disclosed the results of a study, commissioned to the company Cullen International, on the comparative analysis of the separation and equivalence models of the fixed network in the main industrialized countries, with the aim of providing an updated international benchmark against which to analyze the current Italian model of separation.
“The study – reads a note – analyzes ten of the most representative countries in terms of network separation models and compares their governance structures and equivalence measures, including the presence or absence of a Supervisory Body ( similar to the Italian experience)
The countries examined are: Italy, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ireland, Iceland, United Kingdom, Poland, Sweden, Australia and New Zealand.
This is an in-depth and information-rich comparison from which it emerges that ownership separation is a model applied only in Australia and New Zealand, while Europe is oriented towards functional separation and, in some countries, towards legal separation. The study pays particular attention to the tools with which the equivalence of network access services is guaranteed. Here too it is noted that Europe presents various nuances, even if in recent years, in Italy and in other countries, the tendency to offer services has emerged, at least in relation to new fiber offers, in the so-called Equivalence of Input (EoI) regime. which, unlike the less advanced Equivalence of Output (EoO) model, ensures wholesale supply, not only at the same economic conditions,
The presence of an internal and independent Supervisory Body that monitors equal access to the network of the vertically integrated dominant operator is found in four of the ten countries analyzed (Italy, Iceland, Ireland and the United Kingdom). This demonstrates the spread of this control body which, moreover, has also been incorporated into the European Communications Code: “The commitments [which intend to address the competition problems identified by the national regulatory authority] may include the appointment of a trustee control, whose identity and mandate should be approved by the national regulatory authority, and the obligation for the undertaking offering them to submit periodic implementation reports ”
This represents the recognition, at European level, of this model of independent internal regulation created by the Italian regulator back in 2008.
A summary of the study was published on the website of the Supervisory Body (http://organodivigilanza.gruppotim.it) The full study will be presented on 10 July 2020 at 10am.
“With the study – declares President Sclafani – commissioned from the company Cullen International, the Supervisory Body on equal access to the TIM network wants to provide its own contribution to the debate on the most appropriate governance models to ensure compliance with equivalence in a dynamic sector like TLC. This comparative analysis is aimed not only at sector operators but also at institutions, with the aim of illustrating the various solutions adopted in various international contexts to effectively regulate a vertically integrated operator for the benefit of consumers and the market. This is a useful study to identify an international benchmark with which to compare the Italian model. “
