European Approach to BPL Said to Track FCC’s
European countries are moving toward agreement on a European Commission (EC) proposal aimed at easing regulatory barriers to broadband deployment over power lines (BPL). At its Oct. 13-14 meeting, the EC’s Communications Committee (COCOM) reached consensus on a draft recommendation members think “is the right thing to do,” a Commission official said. The recommendation tracks the approach the FCC recently took on broadband over power line, he said. Telcos say they're committed to opening broadband markets, but remain concerned about interference issues. The technology is called powerline communications (PLC) in Europe.
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
Export Compliance Daily combines U.S. export control news, foreign border import regulation and policy developments into a single daily information service that reliably informs its trade professional readers about important current issues affecting their operations.
The FCC announced its BPL decision Oct. 14 (CD Oct 15 p4). It drew a partial dissent from Comr. Copps, who said the decision dodged issues such as access to emergency services, universal service and cross-subsidization. But the EC official said those concerns are already addressed by other European Union (EU) laws. A cross-subsidization directive requires communications and energy companies to maintain separate accounts, he said. The new telecom regulatory package requires PLC operators, like others, to provide access to emergency services, he said. And European law already recognizes the need for universal service to close the digital divide, the EC official said.
The Sept. 30 draft recommendation says member states should “remove any unjustified regulatory obstacles” to deploy and operate e-communications networks and services over powerlines. Until standards for presuming conformity for PLC systems have been harmonized under the EMC directive, member states should consider systems compliant if their equipment complies with the directive and is used for its intended purpose, and if it’s installed and operated according to good engineering practices.
If a PLC system causes harmful interference that can’t be resolved, national authorities should assess the compliance of the system with the EMC directive, the draft says. If it or the interfered product is noncompliant, authorities should “impose proportionate, non- discriminatory and transparent enforcement measures” to ensure compliance. If the PLC system and the interfered product are compliant but interference continues, national authorities should consider taking “special measures” under the EMC directive to resolve it. The draft also recommends that member states be required to report regularly to COCOM on PLC deployment and operations, including data on disturbance levels and other information useful for a harmonized standard.
In Europe, as in the U.S., the key concern is preventing PLC from interfering with radio frequencies. It’s important “to accommodate the entry of PLC systems as they could provide a competitive means of wholesale access, which can only be a good thing for Europe: After all, there will be no eEurope without eAccess!” said the European Competitive Telecom Assn. (ECTA). The group wants to see a common EU standard that conforms with EMC requirements and recognizes that where interference arises, changes to both the PLC network and the interfered product should be considered. At the same time, ECTA said, the draft recommendations acknowledge lack of evidence of interference in trials so far, so authorities should not be “excessively cautious.”
The European Telecom Network Operators’ Assn. (ETNO) is committed to open markets and supports the development of new and innovative platforms, a spokesman said. However, he said, there are still many technical issues to be resolved -- “namely the interferences between power lines and radio users” -- to allow full PLC deployment in Europe.
The recommendation won’t have the force of a directive or decision, but because it will be adopted under the new e-communications regulatory framework, member states must justify deviations from its provisions, the EC official said. It must now be translated into the 25 languages of the enlarged EU before the COCOM can vote on it, he said. That vote is expected early next year, after which it goes to the Commission for final adoption.
EU member states’ attitudes’ toward PLC have evolved from wariness and negativity to favoring controlled rollout (CD May 12 p3).