When SFR and Free laugh France Telecom cries

When SFR and Free laugh, France Telecom cries... and vice versa. Precisely, for very high throughput, the situation just topple dans l'ombre Ministerial. "I think that we have convinced the public authorities", explained in the "echoes" a leader of the incumbent operator about ten days ago. In the meantime, Secretary of State to the Prospective and development of the digital economy, Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet, received all operators to present the State of Government thinking on the national program very high flow - which will be agreed in the amount of EUR 2 billion by the great loan. This above a series of announcements on digital that plans to Nicolas Sarkozy in mid December, during a travel in the province.

Orange, Free, SFR and Numericable were invited to respond to an outline of project to provide the very high speed in zone 2. This "cost-effective" zone is not as densely populated as zone 1 cities defined by the telecoms (Arcep) regulatory authority, where the competition is raging. The intervention of local authorities does not indispensable to ensure the economic viability of deployment of fibre optic projects. In his note, the cabinet evokes "open calls for projects" including to fund the expensive "last mile networks", that is happening to the home. They would be initiated by the departments at the beginning of the year 2010, for delivery of the projects to the month of June, and inséreraient in departmental guiding schemes in order to avoid overlaps and gaps.

Disappearance of the shared project

This cutting sign the disappearance of the national shared operator project, which was acquired in the first round of consultations, in September. SFR, Free and Orange have created an ad hoc structure to fibrecoating zones 2 and 3. Bercy and the Caisse des Dépôts, who were shareholders, supported this idea. It is no longer question in the current Government note, which pleased the historical operator but leaves the other bitter. "The political message is extremely worrying," insists on in SFR, who fear the return of a situation of monopoly on fibre optics, while this is a blank field or near Paris. "The reality of this beauty contest, is that only France Telecom will follow." We can respond to the first or the second bidding, but they essouffleront.

The incumbent operator does not have ask for pads to install its fibre, then this represents a third of the cost of deployment for SFR, argues the alternative operator. How to compete with the power of a Telecom France in terms of influence at the local level, as well as human resources, said in the small Free The subsidiary of Iliad has indeed less than 1,000 employees (excluding call centres) against 100,000 in its competitor. However, to meet a hundred local tender, will have to deploy an army of officials of the paperwork...

In SFR, we want to believe that shared operator project is not dead. "It is the only viable solution." Otherwise, whenever France Telecom will respond to a call for tenders, the competitors will attack and nothing will happen. "In short, there will be the resurgence of legal quibbling that have slowed the development of ADSL. But for the historical operator, for social peace, it is certainly better than a ménage à trois with Free and SFR.