Gigabit Infrastructure Act

Key points

The EESC

• welcomes the Commission's proposal for a regulation and underlines the importance of fast, effective and simplified procedures, together with appropriate terms, conditions and prices, which can be applied everywhere in a consistent manner, throughout the EU;

• appreciates the decision to use a regulation as the legal instrument, rather than a directive, as this ensures uniformity and limits fragmentation of national laws;

• welcomes the Commission's objective to adapt the Broadband Cost Reduction Directive (BCRD) to recent and current technological, market and regulatory developments, ensuring alignment with the European Electronic Communications Code and contributing to greening the information and communications technology sector as part of the European Green Deal;

• recognises that the sharing of existing infrastructure is crucial to achieving the goals of the EU Digital Decade 2030, and also emphasises the importance of ensuring the security and robustness of networks and their protection;

• considers that the single information points (SIPs) on minimal information on physical infrastructure, which owners of public infrastructure have to provide, should be integrated and linked to other databases which are already available at national level, so as to avoid duplication and save costs;
• believes that the deployment of very high-capacity networks (VHCN) and gigabit connectivity is crucial for development and socio-economic cohesion, as it is an essential factor for the equal economic development of SMEs and professional services, of digital workplaces and of the provision of electronic services in remote areas.