Creation of ECTA CEO Council: the pro-competitive voice for meeting the challenges of the digital world

Brussels, 16 November 2015: Today the CEOs of ten ECTA member companies – 1&1, Eurofiber, EWE TEL, Fastweb, Iliad, Inexio, Level 3 Communications, Play, QSC, Tele2 – gathered in Brussels to establish a new high level advisory group: the ECTA CEO Council. 

This initiative stems from the observation that the benefits of competition in terms of driving investments, innovation, choice and affordability are still too often underestimated, this is the case for the telecoms sector but also more generally for the global economy. 

And at times of change or crisis, misinformation and fear mongering can divert focus from addressing the real problems with real solutions. We want to keep the discussion focused on delivering the shared political objective of getting all Europeans connected in a Digital Single Market that benefits end-users. Re-monopolisation and strengthening of market dominance is not the way to get the economy of the European Single Market growing.

We also need to understand change in order to drive it. As everything is becoming connected from cars to fridges, healthcare services and education, connectivity will be indispensable for everyone’s and every businesses’ daily life. Affordability of high quality connectivity will be therefore one of the most important enablers of the new digital society and economy. 

ECTA CEOs believe that in order to build the networks that connect everyone and everything, the end goal must remain high speed connectivity for all through strong investments but also through affordability, and they want to have the possibility to make their own share of investments. The political objective of promoting network investments should be high on the agenda, but with the aim of enabling efficient investments by all players, big and small. Investment should not be an end in itself, but a tool to achieve our goal to get every citizen and business connected. 

ECTA CEOs are teaming up to strengthen the voice of competition in Bruxelles, this high level involvement aims at supporting the European Commission in achieving a fully Connected Digital Single Market. They support the vision that efficient investments are driven by competition and that a vibrantly competitive telecom market is the only way for the European Union to be globally competitive.
 
"Our common aim is to actively work for a better Europe, a Europe which embraces the digital revolution to connect at affordable prices all citizens and businesses and in which the digital divide is a problem of the past” 

Members of the ECTA CEO Council are:
Martin Witt, CEO, 1&1; Alex Goldblum, CEO, Eurofiber; Norbert Westfal, CEO, EWE TEL; Alberto Calcagno, CEO, Fastweb; Maxime Lombardini, CEO, Iliad; David Zimmer, CEO, Inexio; Andrew Crouch, Regional President EMEA, Level 3 Communications; Jørgen Bang-Jensen, CEO, Play; Jürgen Hermann, CEO, QSC; Allison Kirkby, CEO, Tele2.

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ECTA (the European Competitive Telecommunications Association) is the pan-European pro-competitive trade association that represents more than 100 of the leading challenger telecoms operators across Europe. For over a decade, ECTA has been supporting the regulatory and commercial interests of telecoms operators, ISPs & equipment manufacturers in pursuit of a fair regulatory environment that allows all electronic communications providers to compete on level terms. Our members have been the leading innovators in Internet services, broadband, business communications, entertainment and mobile. 
Contact: 
Aurélie Bladocha, Public Affairs Manager : +32 478 78 61 00+32 478 78 61 00 / This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.