FT: "Over the top" hits Europe

IanFogg | March 29, 2006, 06:47 PM

And so the debate finally arrives in Europe.

Some of Europe’s largest telecommunication operators want the power to levy new charges on internet companies such as Google to distribute their content over the internet.

The operators argue that the move will help them recoup the billions of euros they are investing in new high-speed broadband networks. The position of operators such as Telecom Italia and Deutsche Telekom brings to Europe a contentious debate about the future of the internet that has risen to the top of the regulatory agenda in the US.