Telecoms operators see facilitation of market consolidation as the main path to boost necessary network investments.

Saudi Arabia adopted a new regulation for digital platforms providing audiovisual, audio, gaming, social media and advertising content services. The regulation focuses on the conditions and process required before firms can enter the market. There is no specific requirement on the content responsibility of platforms. The new regulation will come into force by October 2024.

A note explaining the three-criteria test and its use for the definition of relevant markets susceptible to telecoms ex ante regulation.

The Irish telecoms regulator proposes to designate Eircom as having significant market power and impose a full set of remedies, including price caps.

The Brazilian telecoms regulator, Anatel, is consulting until 8 January 2024 on the review of the market analysis in place since 2018. Anatel proposes to define two new relevant markets for spectrum lease and mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) access and deregulate the existing market for wholesale access to fixed copper networks. Many provisions in the proposed analysis would benefit small operators not controlled by the incumbent telecoms and broadcasting operators.

The Brazilian telecoms regulator, Anatel, approved Vivo’s agreement to lease Winity’s 700 MHz spectrum in 1,120 cities, subject to conditions. Amongst these conditions, Winity must give other operators (including Claro and TIM) the possibility to lease the spectrum on non-discriminatory terms according to a procedure defined by Anatel. The agreement also includes provisions for network sharing.