The National Authority for Management and Regulation in Communications (ANCOM) has said that the retail market for fixed broadband services in Romania has been competitive since 2015.
As a result, there is no need to regulate the appropriate wholesale markets. ANCOM’s conclusion follows an analysis it undertook into changes that have taken place in the market between 2015-19. This did not highlight the existence of competitive problems that would justify the imposition of specific regulations at the level of the corresponding wholesale or retail markets. The market for broadband internet access services at fixed points remains competitive, given that the use of the local loop at the wholesale market level is insignificant in Romania.
ANCOM notes the Romania has one of the highest degrees of competition in terms of infrastructure, compared to the situation in the other member states of the European Union, with over 480 providers of broadband internet access services at fixed points in 2019 and with a very heterogeneous market structure.
Although the penetration rate of fixed broadband internet access connections is relatively low, this is caused by factors outside the telecom market, such as the low number of PCs and terminals that allow internet access at home, and at the population level, the low degree of digital literacy, as well as the low level of average per capita income, especially in rural areas.
