Whilst it is difficult to comment with any certainty given the lack of detail available, CISPE makes four important pleas to those framing the regulation:
Cloud infrastructure services must not be regulated like telecom services
Cloud infrastructure is different from telecoms and claims of ‘convergence’ are ill informed and misleading. Cloud infrastructure is a set of horizontal technologies that collect, compute, process, store and distribute data and provide a platform for digital content and applications. It interoperates with telecommunications networks to enable end-to-end cloud services and telcos are big customers of cloud technology – but this is not the same as convergence. Extending regulations designed for the specific demands of telecoms networks to the already heavily regulated and competitive cloud infrastructure sector will only harm Europe’s digital transformation and innovation.
Interconnection rules should not be touched
The current system of agreeing interconnection and peering agreements to connect cloud infrastructure services to telecom networks works well for the mutual benefit of all parties. As recent research has confirmed, among the millions of peering and interconnection events only a handful have ever led to disputes, and of those only one has gone to court. There is no market failure here, and the effect of forcing legal mediation will only incentivise parties to invent and weaponise disputes to the detriment of customers.
Clarifying the Open Internet Regulation does not require new rules
The small number of disputes that have arisen have, in the majority, been resolved by applying the well understood and accepted principles of the Open Internet Regulation. If the Commission believes further clarity is needed, such as on the treatment of innovative services, it can already ask BEREC, its existing, independent, pan-European regulator to issue guidelines.
Governance reform must not sideline technical expertise or stakeholder balance
Speaking of BEREC, CISPE is concerned that the DNA may seek to dilute the independence and technical leadership of BEREC. BEREC has often been the voice of reason against politically charged proposals that could have caused significant damage to the European digital ecosystem (such as the idea of ‘network fees’ / ‘fair share’). Any new centralised EU governance structure that reduces BEREC’s ability to push back on ill-considered regulation would be a retrograde step.
CISPE will continue to campaign to ensure that any new regulations contained in the proposals for a Digital Networks Act are fair and do not limit the growth and potential of Europe’s sovereign cloud infrastructure.
The full CISPE response can downloaded from the official EU consultations page here.
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For further information please contact
Ben Maynard
Director of Communications, CISPE
Ben.maynard@cispe.cloud +44 (0) 7968 537982