European telecoms groups are demanding that major technology companies pay more for the use of their networks, the Financial Times newspaper reported on Monday.
The call came in a letter from the CEOs of 20 companies in the sector, the British newspaper said.
The European companies are seeking a fairer, more appropriate contribution from the biggest generators of traffic such as Google or Netflix.
The signatories of the letter, addressed to the European Commission and MEPs, include the heads of Deutsche Telekom, Vodafone, Telia and the BT group. They believe Google, Netflix and others benefit most from the network, even though they pay very little for it.
The telecoms operators cite cloud service providers who charge customers for data transmission as an example.
Although the demand is not exactly new, time is running out in the run-up to next year’s European elections, writes the British newspaper.
According to the European operators, the data traffic of some technology companies has increased by 30% in recent years. This trend is set to continue without a corresponding return on investment, they fear.
The letter’s signatories also referred to the investment needed to bring 5G mobile telephony to all populated areas of the EU by 2030, the cost of which is estimated by the Commission at €200 billion.
