EU legislation on Big Tech funding 5G rollout likely for next Commission, sources say

By Foo Yun Chee

BRUSSELS (Reuters) -EU industry chief Thierry Breton will likely set out a strategy next year requiring Big Tech to help fund the rollout of 5G and broadband across Europe, leaving it to the next European Commission to decide whether to adopt legislation, people familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.

Europe's telecoms operators say Alphabet's Google, Meta's Facebook, Netflix, Microsoft and Amazon should bear some of the costs because they make up a huge part of internet traffic.

Deutsche Telekom, Orange, Telefonica and Telecom Italia call it fair-share funding while Big Tech says it amounts to an internet tax.

There had been expectations that Breton would propose legislation after seeking feedback from both sides earlier this year on what he said is an investment gap of 200 billion euros ($212.4 billion).

The French commissioner, a former chief executive at France Telecom and supporter of the operators' push, faced blowback from some of his fellow commissioners and some EU countries.

There is no final decision, and a legislative proposal on the funding issue could still pop up on the Commission's work programme to be announced on Oct. 18 that will lay out the EU executive's long-term objectives, one of the sources said.

Breton will likely voice concerns about the recent acquisitions of telecoms stakes by sovereign investment funds and private equity firms to EU telecoms ministers at an Oct. 23-24 meeting in Leon, Spain, another person said.

The current Commission's five-year term ends in November next year.

The EU executive did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

($1 = 0.9418 euros)

(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee; Editing by Tomasz Janowski and Mark Porter)