An updated study on national broadband plans in the EU27 confirms: There has been considerable progress in broadband expansion in Europe. But further efforts are needed.
The EU Commission has published an update of the study on national broadband plans in the EU27. To this end, the aconium had updated the study commissioned by the Commission in 2017. The paper provides an overview of the connectivity measures defined in the National Broadband Plans in the Member States.
In the update, the authors take a look at what has been achieved: To what extent have the goals of the Digital Agenda for Europe (DAE) 2020 been met – i.e. the availability of 30 Mbit/s for all and the inclusion of 100 Mbit/s for 50 percent? Secondly, the focus is on the near future: can the goals of the Gigabit Society 2025 be achieved? These include, for example, gigabit connectivity for the most important socio-economic factors, 5G coverage for all urban areas and access to 100 Mbit/s for all, upgradeable to gigabit.
The study is mainly based on information provided by national authorities, the European Commission and key stakeholders from EU Member States.
The most important results in brief:
- The content of the national broadband plans varies greatly. However, all Member States have an overall strategic concept for the expansion of broadband networks, which is implemented in practice.
- Only a few Member States were close to achieving or had achieved the DAE 2020 targets by the end of 2020: in mid-2020, 87.2% of households had access to 30 Mbit/s or more and 25.9% of households had access to 100 Mbit/s or more.
- Member States need to step up their efforts to reach or come close to the Gigabit Society targets by 2025. It will also be a challenge for most EU Member States to provide all citizens with an upgradeable 100 Mbit/s if broadband rollout continues at the current rate.
- The NBPs are currently being updated to reflect the Gigabit Society 2025 targets. The new plans and their implementation measures will help Member States to achieve the Gigabit Society targets by 2025.
- There are a variety of conditions that influence the success of broadband expansion. Successful national action plans take their respective starting positions into account and describe concrete measures that utilize individual strengths and mitigate the effects of disadvantages.
- The NBPs of the member states generally focus on one or two of the following areas: Demand-side measures, supply-side measures, regulatory and organizational measures, transparency measures.
- There is no single solution for broadband strategies across Europe. The NBPs do not appear to be transferable, while some measures can be applied under the same conditions.
aconium and the European Commission will continue to monitor the trends and updates of the national broadband plans in the Member States in the coming years. The next update of the study is planned for early 2023.
The current study (English version / PDF) can be found on the website of the EU Commission.