2. Key data on online engagement: platform
On platform: 76 members, 37 discussions, 324 comments
2 Special initiatives:
- Crowdsourcing ideas to reduce the costs of broadband rollout (25 answers)
- Commentable case studies on NGA business models (8 answers)
Most discussed: Most active:
How can we bring high speed connections to rural
areas? 91
Lorne Mitchell
Go for fibre, but not any fibre 26 Charles Watt
Crowdsourcing ideas to reduce the costs of
broadband rollout 24 Elizabeth Tait
How can investment in High speed Internet
connectivity help creating jobs and fight Michael Mulquin
unemployment? 22
2020 Vision 18 Efstratios Kehayas
Costs - but also revenues 12
We need many more local internet exchanges! 12 Roger Williams
Monti's proposal of keeping investments for BB and
EDA out of fiscal compact: what do you think? 11 Frits Bussemaker

3. Key data on online engagement: twitter
Most Most active
RT

4. Wordcloud overall discussion

6. Topic 1: Reducing the cost of broadband rollout
25 ideas crowdsourced

7. Headlines from the group ”High speed connections”
Topic 1: Reducing the cost of broadband rollout
Challenges
• Cultural: Need for joined-up thinking and cultural change across government
(convincing road works department about need to lay ducts)
• Business: ensuring collaboration between ISP is very difficult
• Organizational: more clarity on the different responsibilities for digging, ducts and
maintainance, conditions for use
• Legal: clarification on State Aid rules which can create strong delays
• Leadership: understanding of the issue at stake by government
Quote: As a wise man once said, in Washington (and Brussels?), 'the future has
no lobbyists'. Stian Westlake. (Nesta)

8. Topic 1: Reducing the cost of broadband rollout
Actions recommended
BETTER COORDINATION:
 Develop an EU framework for utility code powers Simplifying the task of checking
for existing services and for alternative networks laying new infrastructure.
Example: Catalonia, Paris
 Promote long-term planning and clear information about intrastructure databases
and atlases
NEW MODELS:
 Ensure network openness and new business models, for example by ensuring
access to infrastructures owned by entities outside the telecom sector (e.g. public
domain, utility sectors and railways) or carrier-neutral providers (e.g. Swedish
OpenNet model, Reggefiber, Enet.ie )
 Separate civil works from services: civil works provider can be undertaken by a
municipality or a region – any service provider would then get access to the fibre
 Adopt alternative measures such as new spectrum opportunities, crowdfunding
QUOTE: “What are the social and economic benefits or what would be the cost if
we DONT roll out fibre!”

9. Topic 2: NGA business models

10. Headlines from the group ”High Speed Connections”
Topic 2:
Recommendations
1. Level playing field. Encourage member states to drive their 2020 Digital Agenda programmes with a "hardest first" agenda - This encourages
new competition as the final few % is where the traditional business model fails, so subsidising incumbents is least value for money - it also forces the
incumbents to use more of their own money to reach further, defending their territory
2. Develop an EU framework for utility code powers Simplifying the task of checking for existing services and for alternative networks laying new
infrastructure. - This means incumbents become responsible for knowing where their infrastructure is and for telling anyone who asks - if they don't tell
and it gets dug up, tough - so it helps the smaller players and aids transparency, and would become a template for duct sharing and civils.
3. Develop an EU agreement that member tax & regulatory regimes should be encouraging investment towards a future copper switch-off - This
means business rates on new fibre is bad, 'regulators' pushing ADSL2 into rural areas is bad, (as it won't help those on long lines) and dropping
regulated prices on copper is bad
4. Create a common language for describing NGA services so that consumers receive what they expect - Discouraging coaxial and VDSL services
from being call simply "fibre" and misleading policy makers and consumers. 'UP TO' marketing should be discouraged or completely banned. Telcos
should also be able to provide information about connectivity in every area and not just a broad sweep of 'properties connected to exchanges'. We
need clarity, not weasel words.
5. Expand the language defining NGA in the EU Broadband Guidelines to make clear the common view that public investment in NGA should
achieve a fundamental step-change and not an evolutionary incremental improvement. - Member states have to accept that public subsidy can only
be used once to affect a major change, and not a periodic, evolutionary incremental change - that state aid is a single bite at the cherry, so if VDSL is
chosen, the commercial player receiving the subsidy knows they can't receive more in a few years time to top them up again, and the local authority
has to realise this too.