Georgie Devlin, Pexels
The main purpose of this updated study is to reassess the likelihood of reaching the Gigabit Society 2025 and Digital Decade 2030 connectivity targets following the latest developments in terms of connectivity policies, regulations, and investments at European and national levels. Thanks to the ambitious national broadband plans (NBPs) and the engagement of the telecommunications sector, coupled with public and private investments, the EU made progress towards achieving the connectivity targets in recent years.
On the whole, all Member States have implemented an overall strategic approach to the deployment of broadband networks that delivered practical results. Successful NBPs consider the initial conditions of their Member State of reference, describe concrete measures that build upon their individual strengths and define measures to address challenges. The NBPs analysed in the study usually identify one or two focal points out of the following action lines: Demand Side measures, Supply Side measures, Regulatory and Organizational measures, Transparency measures. There is no one-size-fits-all solution for broadband strategies across Europe. Therefore, the NBPs are mostly tailored to the needs of individual Member States, even though some measures can be easily adapted and implemented across multiple Member States under similar conditions.
However, reaching the Gigabit Society 2025 and Digital Decade 2030 targets might prove challenging for some Member States. Some of the factors that may be slowing down the progress towards achieving connectivity target are e.g. low FTTP coverage, low level of digital skills, low subscription rates for gigabit speeds, difficult topography, challenging and cost-intensive rollout in rural and remote areas, barriers to investment process, high broadband prices, not extensive enough investment plans, high DOCSIS 3.1. market share, low population density, high number of mobile-broadband-only users, etc.
If the EU does not want to lag behind at global level, broadband development needs to speed up even further. In this regard, the provision and exploitation of gigabit networks and internet services are crucial for the EU’s future economic development and competitiveness, as well as for the progress and cohesion of society as a whole. Current policies and initiatives, such as Next Generation EU, RRF, the Digital Decade Policy Programme, CEF2 Digital, the Gigabit Infrastructure Act, the Connectivity Toolbox, will have a huge impact on the rollout of the broadband technologies.