José María Álvarez-Pallete, president of the Telefónica group, defended this Monday in Brussels the “responsible use of shared resources” so that “all actors assume their share of responsibility”, and has insisted on a “deregulation” process in The telecommunications sector, which allows it to “compete with the same service, the same rules and obligations” as its rivals.
“It is time to overcome Europe’s clear asymmetry with respect to other regions before it is too late. We have to move quickly and prepare to face the future with confidence. Millions of European companies and citizens depend on us. They need more from us” , stood out in his speech during the telecommunications company’s centenary event.
The event was attended by a high representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell; the president of the European Investment Bank (EIB), Nadia Calviño; the vice president of the European Commission and commissioner for the protection of the European way of life, Margaritis Schinas; or the triple cycling world champion, Annemiek van Vleuten.
With less than three months left before the European elections are held, Pallete stressed that “European citizens will soon decide the configuration of the future European Parliament”, and defended that “it is legitimate and necessary to recover European leadership.” According to the manager, today “six actors consume more than 50% of telecommunications capacity,” which is why he considers it important that “all agents assume their share of responsibility.”
“At Telefónica we were regulated because we were an incumbent copper monopoly. We are no longer a monopoly, we are no longer incumbent, and ours is no longer a copper network. It is time to deregulate. Let us compete. Same service, same rules, same obligation,” he emphasized.
The president of Telefónica considers that Europe, “has always been the cradle of values”, so it cannot now allow itself to “stay behind” in the new global context. Pallete has advocated “advancing Europe in Artificial Intelligence, security and defense, with communications as the backbone.” “Europe needs a robust and sustainable telecommunications sector. We need the European institutions to enable this. We need a proper definition of the relevant markets and the escalation in the market. We need a new approach to regulation,” he said.
European Investment Bank
For the president of the European Investment Bank, Nadia Calviño, the digital transition “must be inclusive, sustainable and fair”, while calling for “guaranteeing that these investments are compatible with the values” of the EU.
“From this point of view, we are building a legal framework including AI that guarantees that citizens and data are protected and can have confidence in this technological revolution that will mark our future,” he stated before pointing out that “it all depends on what to be done today”, which is why he has encouraged ensuring that it is given the “appropriate form for the future”.
