Meta Says Extra Network Fees Will Not Solve EU Telecoms’ Financial Problems

Meta Platforms on Thursday voiced its strongest criticism up to now of a push by EU telecoms operators to get Big Tech to foot extra community prices, saying this is able to not clear up their monetary issues and in addition ignores tech firms’ hefty investments.

Deutsche Telekom, Orange, Telefonica, Telecom Italia and different operators have lobbied for 20 years for US tech giants to contribute to 5G and broadband roll-out.

The operators say that given they account for greater than half of knowledge web visitors, Alphabet‘s Google, Apple, Meta, Netflix, Amazon and Microsoft ought to contribute to the billions of euros in infrastructure prices.

“We recognise the financial challenges that European telecom operators now face after decades of strong performance,” Kevin Salvadori, Meta’s vice chairman for community and Bruno Cendon Martin, its director and head of actuality labs wi-fi, wrote in a weblog publish.

“However, proposals by some European telecom operators to impose network fees on Content Application Providers (CAPs) such as Meta are not the solution,” they mentioned.

“Network fee proposals are built on a false premise because they do not recognise the value that CAPs create for the digital ecosystem, nor the investments we make in the infrastructure that underpins it.”

Telecoms lobbying group ETNO rejected Meta’s claims and pointed to the large outlay required in coming years.

“Official figures show that EUR 174 billion (nearly Rs. 15,54,000 crore) is still required to meet Europe’s network investment needs,” a spokesperson mentioned.

“Big tech should contribute to filling this gap, as their business heavily relies on the traffic carried by European networks. The average metaverse user is expected to consume up to 40 times more data than today.”

Salvadori and Martin cited the tens of billions of euros Meta invests in its apps and platforms similar to Facebook, Instagram and Quest which in flip creates the demand that enables telecom operators to cost individuals for web entry.

Meta pointed to the over $880 billion (almost Rs. 72,27,800 crore) in digital infrastructure across the globe, together with about $120 billion (almost Rs. 9,85,600 crore) a 12 months from 2018 to 2021, which tech firms have collectively invested, saving telecom operators round $6 billion (almost Rs. 49,280 crore) per 12 months.

It dismissed telecoms suppliers’ arguments that the growth of the metaverse, shared digital worlds accessible through the web, would pressure infrastructure capability.

“But this is nonsense. The development of the metaverse will not require telecom operators to grow capital expenditures for greater network investment,” Salvadori and Martin mentioned.

© Thomson Reuters 2023