16 Sep. Competitiveness requires fair competition: Europe’s digital future hangs in the balance – Joint press release from ANGA, BREKO and VATM
Brussels, 15 September 2026. Following EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s State of the Union address, the industry associations ANGA, BREKO and VATM are calling on the European Commission to make fair competition a central guiding principle of European digital policy.
Europe must boost its competitiveness, strengthen its technological sovereignty and make faster progress with digitalisation. High-performance fibre-optic and mobile networks are indispensable for this. However, the conditions under which these networks are developed are crucial: the goals of the Digital Decade can only be achieved through intense competition. Europe’s digital strength is based on investment and innovation from many different companies.
Germany, in particular, demonstrates just how important this diversity is. Local, regional and nationwide companies invest billions annually in new networks and are driving the transition to future-proof digital infrastructures. At the same time, there continue to be significant differences in the market positions of companies within the German telecommunications market. A European regulatory framework must take this reality into account.
Clear expectations for the Digital Networks Act
With the Digital Networks Act (DNA), Europe is now setting a decisive course for the future of digital infrastructure. For ANGA, BREKO and VATM, the principle is clear: regulation must continue to be based on actual market power. Where companies hold significant market power, national regulatory authorities must be able to intervene effectively. Conversely, companies that invest in competition and build new networks must not be burdened by additional regulation.
It is equally important that European harmonisation is not confused with a one-size-fits-all approach. The telecommunications markets of the Member States differ considerably. Member States must therefore retain sufficient national regulatory discretion to be able to respond to existing market structures and competition issues.
Regulating the transition from copper to fibre is also of central importance for further investment in networks and Europe’s digital competitiveness. This transition must be predictable, non-discriminatory and in line with competition rules. Those who have invested in new fibre-optic networks need reliable and investment-friendly framework conditions. At the same time, provider and product diversity must be maintained and customers’ freedom of choice safeguarded. In the view of the associations ANGA, BREKO and VATM, the rules-based approach proposed by the Commission for managing the technological transition from copper to fibre-optic provides the right incentives for investment and must not be watered down in the further legislative process.
ANGA, BREKO and VATM call on President von der Leyen, the European Commission, the European Parliament and the Member States to enshrine these principles in the ongoing proceedings on the Digital Networks Act. Europe’s digital competitiveness will only grow in the long term if competition in its telecommunications markets remains strong.
