{"id":14075,"date":"2025-09-04T07:48:39","date_gmt":"2025-09-04T06:48:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/about-us\/regions\/europe\/?p=14075"},"modified":"2026-01-05T10:02:24","modified_gmt":"2026-01-05T10:02:24","slug":"europes-telecoms-sector-urges-a-forward-looking-approach-to-mergers-to-drive-investment-and-innovation-across-the-eu","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/about-us\/regions\/europe\/general\/europes-telecoms-sector-urges-a-forward-looking-approach-to-mergers-to-drive-investment-and-innovation-across-the-eu\/","title":{"rendered":"Europe\u2019s telecoms sector urges a forward-looking approach to mergers to drive investment and innovation across the EU"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Brussels, 4 September 2025<\/em><\/strong> \u2013 The GSMA and Connect Europe, the industry associations representing Europe\u2019s telecoms operators, call for strategic reform of competition policy in a joint response to the European Commission consultation on the Review of the Merger Guidelines<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Modernising the EU Merger Control Framework \u2013 so that the benefits of a merger on investment, innovation and resilience are taken into account \u2013 is essential for strengthening Europe\u2019s competitiveness. However, the current plans for revising the merger guidelines do not go far enough. A comprehensive reform of the EU Merger Regulation is paramount to provide companies operating within the Single Market with greater legal certainty when it comes to achieving scale.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We share the conclusions of Mario Draghi<\/a> and Enrico Letta, who underline that the link between competition, investment and innovation is non-linear, particularly in capital-intensive sectors like telecoms. Their converging view is clear: facilitating consolidation is essential to unlock higher levels of investment in connectivity. In our view, the Commission must therefore shift its focus from value-destroying remedies to creating value by recognising efficiencies that foster investment and innovation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Europe\u2019s telecoms market consists of more than 100 operators, each serving on average 5 million subscribers \u2013 compared to 450 million and 110 million subscribers per operator in China and the USA, respectively. The inability of telecom operators to gain scale in European markets limits the long-term certainty required to make the significant investments needed to deliver state-of-the-art, secure and resilient connectivity to the continent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The initial assumption that mergers lead to higher prices and lower consumer welfare also overlooks the fact that mergers can drive innovation and quality, and it fails to recognise the importance of scale and investment incentives for growth and productivity in certain sectors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To ensure that the review of the merger framework delivers both for Europe\u2019s economy and for its consumers, the European Commission should adopt a more flexible, forward-looking, and future-proof approach to merger reviews. This is why, in our submission to the consultation, we call for:<\/p>\n\n\n\n