Telecom regulation in
the Netherlands
5 November 2014
1
Agenda
•
•
•
•
•
Introduction of ACM
Telecom trends and developments in NL
Telecom markets analysis
(Cable) television regulation in NL
Consuwijzer
2
Introduction of ACM
3
Introduction of ACM
• Autonomous Administrative Authority
• Merged from 3 organisations in 2013
• Board of three:
– Chris Fonteijn (Chair)
– Antia Vegter
– Henk Don (telecom)
• ± 500 FTE
4
Introduction of ACM
5
ACM Strategy
• “ACM aims to create opportunities and options for consumers
and businesses”
• Consumer welfare
• Consumer awareness
Core values:
• Independence
• Professionalism
• Openness
6
Telecom-related activities
• Registration of public electronic communication service
operators, collecting fees
• Issuing phone number series
• Telecom-specific consumer protection laws
(net neutrality, contract clauses, transparency, USD)
• Dispute settlement (eg radio tower access, rights of way for
cable laying)
• Market Analyses: SMP and access / tariff regulation
Not:
• Frequency auctions,
• Technical oversight,
• Media act (any content)
7
Telecom trends and developments in
NL
8
Networks
• Mobile:
– Three 3G-networks
– Already two national 4G-networks, two others are being rolled out
• Fixed:
– 100% copper coverage: upgrading via pair bonding and vectoring
– 95% cable coverage (households)
– 30% FttH coverage (households)
Broadband: homes connected (FttH)
2.500
number of connections x 1,000
2.000
1.500
1.000
500
0
Homes co nnected (FttH)
30-6-2010
31-12-2010
30-6-2011
31-12-2011
30-6-2012
31-12-2012
30-6-2013
31-12-2013
30-6-2014
569
658
768
918
1.078
1.303
1.512
1.832
1.994
9
UPC/Ziggo cable merger
European Commission recently approved merger, with some
content remedies
• UPC/Ziggo reaches 92% of NL households, significantly less
businesses
• Main competitor of KPN in most markets
• EC: any risk of joint dominance is not due to merger
10
Access to broadband internet
High-speed and basic broadband
11
Broadband internet
• Market positions of KPN and merged
UPC/Ziggo roughly similar
30-9-2012
CANALDIGITAAL
KPN
[40 - 45%]
TELE2
[5 - 10%]
T-MOBILE
[0 - 5%]
UPC
[15 - 20%]
ZIGGO
[25 - 30%]
Other
[5 - 10%]
31-12-2012 31-3-2013 30-6-2013
[40 - 45%] [40 - 45%] [40 - 45%]
[5 - 10%]
[5 - 10%]
[5 - 10%]
[0 - 5%]
[0 - 5%]
[0 - 5%]
[15 - 20%] [15 - 20%] [15 - 20%]
[25 - 30%] [25 - 30%] [25 - 30%]
[5 - 10%]
[5 - 10%]
[5 - 10%]
30-9-2013
[40 - 45%]
[5 - 10%]
[0 - 5%]
[15 - 20%]
[25 - 30%]
[0 - 5%]
31-12-2013
[40 - 45%]
[0 - 5%]
[0 - 5%]
[15 - 20%]
[25 - 30%]
[5 - 10%]
31-3-2014
[0 - 5%]
[40 - 45%]
[0 - 5%]
[15 - 20%]
[25 - 30%]
[5 - 10%]
30-6-2014
[0 - 5%]
[40 - 45%]
[0 - 5%]
[15 - 20%]
[25 - 30%]
[5 - 10%]
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Television
Television: digitization of subscriptions
60%
50%
Share of subscriptions
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
30-9-2012
31-12-2012
31-3-2013
30-6-2013
30-9-2013
31-12-2013
31-3-2014
30-6-2014
Analogue only
19%
19%
17%
16%
15%
14%
14%
13%
Digital and analogue
48%
47%
48%
49%
49%
50%
50%
51%
Digital only
33%
34%
35%
35%
36%
36%
36%
36%
13
Fixed telephony
Single calls (PSTN)
•
•
•
•
Two calls (ISDN2)
Migration from PSTN to
VoB expected to slow
down in 2015/2016
Ongoing migration from
ISDN2 to IP
Migration from ISDN30 to
IP just started
Decrease in market
volume dual and multiple
Multiple calls (ISDN30)
14
Bundling
Multiplay: bundles offers based on multiple services billed together
7.000
Number of subscriptions with bundled offers (x 1,000)
6.000
5.000
4.000
3.000
2.000
1.000
0
30-6-2011
31-12-2011
30-6-2012
31-12-2012
30-6-2013
31-12-2013
30-6-2014
1.330
1.189
1.088
1.003
1.007
897
838
Dual play - Broadband and television
662
672
656
679
697
728
799
Dual play - Fixed telephony and television
89
105
90
98
99
101
91
Triple play + quadruple play
2.420
2.714
2.999
3.337
3.692
3.914
4.057
Total bundled subscriptions
4.500
4.680
4.833
5.118
5.496
5.640
5.785
Dual play - Broadband and fixed telephony
15
Mobile market
Mobile: Volume retail minutes of traffic, data and sms (MNOs and MVNOs)
14
12
volume x 1,000,000,000
10
8
6
4
2
0
30-6-2012
30-9-2012
31-12-2012
31-3-2013
30-6-2013
30-9-2013
31-12-2013
Minutes of traffic (x 1,000)
5.634.160
5.363.795
5.760.782
5.686.770
5.853.737
5.582.763
6.224.566
31-3-2014
6.205.108
Data (x 1,000 MB)
5.331.243
5.932.102
6.749.284
7.215.930
7.761.576
8.727.345
10.274.603
11.588.649
SMS (x 1,000)
2.080.763
1.838.890
1.692.681
1.440.031
1.386.259
1.316.488
1.178.447
1.061.956
16
Telecom markets analysis
17
Market analysis
• Objectives:
– Foster competition and investments
– Promotion of consumer interest
– Creation of internal market
• Analysis of telecom markets:
– If SMP ACM imposes obligations:
• Access to least replicable network elements
– Process of market analysis:
• Draft consulted nationally
• Second draft notified with EC
18
3rd round of market analysis
Regulated
Light regulation
wholesale
LQ WBA
downstream
Wholesale leased lines
and HQ WBA
ODF-FttO Access
Multiple
Calls
(ISDN 15>)
Two calls
(ISDN2)
Single calls
(PSTN)
Market 1&2:
fixed telephony
Business connectivity
services
retail
Market 4: LLU
ODF-FttH/MDF/SDF Access
Wholesale Fixed
telephony
WBT/ huurlijnen
Market 5&6:
WBA and WLL
Local loop unbundling
Not regulated
Internet
Mulitiple
Calls
(ISDN15>)
Two calls
(ISDN2)
Single calls
(PSTN)
Television
Fixed telephony
19
LLU market analysis
• Retail markets:
– Risk on single SMP KPN on fixed telephony and business
connectivity serivies
– Risk on joint SMP KPN and UPC/Ziggo on internet
(including bundles)
• Wholesale market LLU:
– Copper and FttH-access belong to market
– Unbundled cable-access no substitute
– KPN is owner of copper- and FttH-network and has to grant
access (including non-discrimination and tariff regulation)
20
(Cable) Television regulation in NL
21
First & second TV analysis – regulation
• 2006:
– Separate market for cable TV
– SMP regional cable operators
– Access obligation for physical channel/frequency
• Not used: access seekers wanted cheap access to the
cable operators commercial package of channels, or
wanted to resell that package
• 2009:
– Broad market with analogue and digital cable,
ADSL, FttH, satellite, terrestrial
– Still SMP regional cable operators
– Access obligation to resale analogue package
• Annulled by court in 2010
22
Third TV analysis – no regulation
• 2011: same broad retail TV market
• TV market no longer on EC list: three criteria
– High and non-transitory barriers to entry?
– No development toward competition?
– Other legislation will not solve problems?
• Conclusion: market does nog pass three
criteria test, so no ex-ante regulation
– Digital TV growing, making competition from other
infrastructures easier
– Entry possible on DSL, FttH, resale DVB-T, and
threat from OTT services
– KPN growing as strong competitor, cable shrinking
23
Television distribution development NL
2006
80-85% cable
<1% IPTV-DSL
10-15% satellite
0-5% terrestrial
2014
60-65% cable
10-15% DSL-IPTV
5-10% satellite
5-10% terrestrial
5-10% FttH (IPTV, DVB-C,
analogue)
>40 cable networks
KPN starting <5%
±20 cable networks
KPN strong competitor 25-30%
24
Current TV issues
• No new analysis, 2011 conclusion still holds
– UPC/Ziggo merger does not change this
– But politicians/competitors not happy, could request formal
analysis
• Discussions
– Some HBBtv signals blocked by (all) TV operators
– ‘Level playing field’ between OTT and broadcasting
services/providers
– Possible regulations for search portals, EPG’s
• 2015: analysis of IP interconnection (peering)
– The wholesale side of netneutrality
– Issue is cost of OTT video (that competes with TV operators)25
ConsuWijzer
Miranda Keijzer | November 2014
ConsuWijzer – how did we start?
• 2006: Start of the Consumer Authority
• Start of ConsuWijzer, as an Information service of 3 enforcement
agency’s
• Key to succes: Education & Insight in the markets
• 2008: switch to empowerment of consumers
• 2010: First Government website-of-the-year award
• 2013: merger of Nma, OPTA and CA to ACM
ConsuWijzer
• Two legs of consumer protection
– Enforcement
– Information Services
Organisation and ambition: two goals
Collecting
indications
ConusWijzer
Consumer
empowerment
Facts & Figures
2.000.000 site visits
70.000 requests & signals
Customer Satisfaction: 7.3
Readiness to take action: 46%
2014 ACM Conference – Innovation in Oversight, Oversight and Innovation
Empowerment
Key principles in empowerment:
•
Behavioral science
ConusWijzer
• Practical tools to reduce the barrier to
really take action.
24 January 2014
• We use easy-to-understand
communication and give practical advice.
Tone of voice
It is not about what we say.., It is about what they understand!
ConsuWijzer
• Clear and understandable advice, in plain
language
• To empower -> do it yourself
• All advice contains an action plan
• Do not pick a side!
Tools
ConsuWijzer
Webshop scan
Example letters
Checklists
Leaflets
Preparing
conversations
• Compare lists
• Travel prices check
• etc.
24 January 2014
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•
•
•
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”if you snooze, you lose”
• If consumers were more active, competition would increase, new entrants
would be attracted, the increase in innovation would be supported, and
the need for regulatory oversight would be reduced.
• General interest was high, our campaign received positive and widespread
attention in major newspapers and on national television.
if you snooze, you lose
ConusWijzer
• In this campaign, we address and attempt to appeal to certain behavioral
biases people naturally have. Examples are:
– The Status quo bias
– Loss aversion bias
– Social preference
Best practices
• Combine consumer advice with
business intelligence
• Don’t think in legal areas but in
consumer problems
• It is not about what we say, it is
what they understand
ConsuWijzer
• Information services is an
integrated proces, be involved at
the start of an investigation
Questions?
Thank you for your attention
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