Deutsche Telekom basically supports the Commission's recommendation to promote cooperation amongst network operators and others concerned on administrative, technical and operational issues at the national and European level. This cooperation must not, however, jeopardize a company's freedom to maneuver, i.e., the ability of a company to develop services enabling it to achieve a technological, qualitative or price-related edge over its competitors. In order to create open competition throughout Europe, provisions for gaining access to the market need to be sufficiently harmonized. An obligation to provide unbundled access to the local loop should only apply to available capacities and not result in the incumbent having to make additional investments. What Deutsche Telekom is now offering is already extensive and sufficient for meeting the goals set by the EU Commission.
Competitors have direct access to a bare copper pair for high bit-rate use.
There are no restrictions on other technical uses as long as network integrity is ensured. Offers of this kind, however, are not extensively and sufficiently available in the other EU Member States. The EU Commission should therefore, as a matter of priority, concentrate its efforts in the future on achieving a uniform obligation in all Member States to unbundle the local loop. There is otherwise the risk that the pan-European market and services will develop in different directions. The EU Commission mentioned the shared use access option for copper wires for the first time in its working document.