Please unleash us, Europes telcos urge regulators as industry bangs drum for more mega-deals
Summary
However, this costly endeavor of modernization has happened in tandem with sluggish revenue growth and an inability for the sector to effectively monetize its networks to the same degree that technology giants have done with the emergence of mobile applications and, more recently, generative AI tools. "Theres this real focus now around European competitiveness," Luke Kehoe, industry analyst for Europe at network intelligence firm Ookla, told CNBC on the sidelines of MWC last week. The document calls for, among other things, "revised guidelines for assessing mergers so that innovation, resilience and the investment intensity of competition in certain strategic sectors are given adequate weight in light of the European economys acute needs." Meanwhile, last year former European Central Bank President Mario Draghi released a long-awaited report that urged radical reforms to the EU through a new industrial strategy to ensure its competitiveness. "This will make it possible to rapidly adapt to new customer needs and market realities, whether building new partnerships, undergoing M&A or delayering integrated businesses – all trends we expect to reach new heights over the next 24 months," he added.