31.1.2023
1.
EN
Official Journal of the European Union
C 36/3
INTRODUCTION
1.
Connectivity is a fundamental building block of digital transformation.
It is of strategic importance for growth and innovation in all economic sectors of the Union and for social and territorial cohesion.
2.
The Union has set ambitious connectivity objectives in the Gigabit Communication (1), the Communication Shaping Europe’s digital future (2), the Digital Compass Communication (3) and in its proposal for a decision of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing the 2030 Policy Programme Path to the Digital Decade (4) (DDPP proposal).
3.
In the Gigabit Communication, the Commission set out the following connectivity objectives for 2025: (a) all Union households, rural or urban, should have an internet connectivity with a download speed of at least 100 Mbps, upgradable to 1 Gbps; (b) socio-economic drivers, such as digitally intensive enterprises, schools, hospitals and public administration should benefit from a download speed of at least 1 Gbps and an upload speed of at least 1 Gbps; and (c) all urban areas and major transport paths should have uninterrupted 5G coverage (5).
4.
The Communication Shaping Europe’s digital future explains that the expression ‘100 Mbps, upgradable to Gigabit speed’ reflects the Commission’s expectation that, as the decade progresses, households will increasingly need 1 Gbps speed (6).
5.
The Digital Compass Communication states, as the connectivity objective for 2030, that all Union households should be covered by a Gigabit network (7), and all populated areas should be covered by 5G (8).
The DDPP proposal underlines that ‘societal needs for upload and download bandwidth are constantly growing.
By 2030, networks with gigabit speeds should become available at accessible conditions for all those who need or wish such capacity’ (9).
6.
To achieve the Union’s objectives for 2025 and 2030, adequate investment is needed.
Such investments primarily come from private investors and may be complemented, where necessary, by public funds, in accordance with State aid rules.
7.
The COVID-19 pandemic underlined the importance of performant electronic communications networks for people, businesses and public institutions.
On 27 May 2020, the Commission put forward its proposal for a major recovery plan to mitigate the economic and social impact of the pandemic, NextGenerationEU (10).
The Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) established by Regulation (EU) 2021/241 of the European Parliament and of the Council (11) is part of that plan.
One of the key priorities of the RRF is to support the digital transition, through connectivity measures aimed in particular at bridging the ‘digital divide’ between urban and rural areas and addressing market failures with respect to the deployment of performant networks.
Regulation (EU) 2021/241 requires that each Member State devote at least 20 % of the allocated funding to measures fostering the digital transition.
(1) Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions of 14 September 2016, Connectivity for a Competitive Digital Single Market – Towards a European Gigabit Society, COM(2016) 587 final.
(2) Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee the Committee of Regions of 19 February 2020, Shaping Europe’s digital future, COM(2020) 67 final.
(3) Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee the Committee of Regions of 9 March 2021, 2030 Digital Compass: the European way for the Digital Decade, COM(2021) 118 final.
(4) Proposal for a Decision of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing the 2030 Policy Programme ‘Path to the Digital Decade’, COM(2021) 574 final, 2021/0293 (COD).
(5) Section 3 of the Gigabit Communication.
(6) Endnote 3 of the Communication on Shaping Europe’s digital future.
(7) At the current stage of development, fibre to the home, fibre to the building and performant cable networks (at least DOCSIS 3.1) are able to deliver 1 Gbps download speed.
(8) Section 3.2 of the Digital Compass Communication.
(9) Recital (7) of the DDPP proposal.
(10) Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the European Council, the Council, the European Economic And Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions of 27 May 2020, Europe’s moment: Repair and Prepare for the Next Generation, COM(2020) 456 final.
(11) Regulation (EU) 2021/241 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 February 2021 establishing the Recovery and Resilience Facility (OJ L 57, 18.2.2021, p. 17).
See also Council Regulation (EU) 2020/2094 of 14 December 2020 establishing a European Union Recovery Instrument to support the recovery in the aftermath of the COVID-19 crisis (OJ L 433 I, 22.12.2020, p. 23).