Outline

With the Fourth Industrial Revolution the world is heading to the next area of development. Information becomes available anytime, anywhere, things are all connected, new technologies like artificial intelligence, self-driving cars, Industry 4.0 are rising and changing today’s world. Like all new technologies they are bringing new benefits along with new challenges. This implies also new roles and responsibilities on governments and regulators.

As the information and communication technologies – ICT are the basis for this revolution the wellbeing of a country will depend more than ever on the ability to realize sustainable strategies for the deployment of this crucial infrastructure, with its trend of automation and data exchange. Main strategies will be converging on the broadband development which forms the baseline to foster efficiently all this new technology, emphasising the need to a comprehensive, state of the art and future proof networks.

The EMERG Benchmark Report of 2016 provides a sound basis to discuss the further development of the ICT sector in the Mediterranean region.

The workshop will focus on key questions regarding broadband deployment strategies like:

Broadband target setting
Cost-minimizing roll-out of fixed and mobile broadband technology mix
Demand and supply-side regulatory support
Measuring and monitoring of broadband QoS/QoE
State aid and other forms of promoting broadband deployment
How to set incentives to stimulate the demand side for high speed broadband

The EMERG Benchmark report of 2016 illustrated that already many countries adopted measurements to promote the deployment of broadband. The workshop will provide the opportunity to learn from best practice experience form other countries and to share knowledge on different approaches and success stories.

Increasing reach of people to different types of communication tools has been imposed on certain service providers by the universal service obligation. For example, through expansion of coverage areas of telecom networks the availability of basic services of electronic communication services is secured. The next graph gives an overview of the situation in the EMERG member state as a basis.

When it comes to the question of USO and the use of USO to foster broadband development different scenarios can be observed. The workshop will examine issues like

New approaches of defining universal access and universal service
How much broadband access is universal?
Best practice in financing
New approaches of “National Wholesale Open Access” providers
Handicapped users

AGENDA: EMERG_17_06_Agenda 2017_Berlin_FINAL_public

Recommendations

Update Broadband Strategies

All EMERG members should encourage the elaboration of a national broadband strategy with the objective to accelerate broadband network deployment and broadband service usage over and above the purely market driven level. Strategies should include appropriate financing instruments.

Improve Universal Service System

EMERG members are encouraged to further develop their universal service systems to include a minimum broadband access service offered to every citizen.