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On Sunday, Swisscom’s media office, at the request of the Keystone-SDA news agency, confirmed a corresponding statement by the head of regulation and policy at Swisscom, Thomas Stemmler, in the “SonntagsZeitung”. According to Stemmler, the fiber optic architecture preferred by Comco requires many additional cables that do not have space in the existing conduits in the ground.
“That is why you have to open the streets in many places in Switzerland and install thicker pipes,” Stemmler says in the article. When asked, Swisscom media spokeswoman Alicia Richon said she could not say how many kilometers of road Swisscom had already torn up during the fiber optic installation.
According to “SonntagsZeitung”, experts estimate the cost of additional road tearing for fiber optic installation at two billion francs. “We do not provide figures,” says the media spokeswoman.
Dispute between Swisscom and Weko
At the end of 2020, Comco opened an investigation into Swisscom’s fiber optic expansion. This is still running. The antitrust watchdogs view the network architecture that Swisscom has pursued so far, with only one line from the telephone exchange to the street shaft, as anti-competitive.
The Comco insists on an expansion with a supply line for every household. This is the only way Swisscom’s competitors can offer customers their own Internet offering that differs from Swisscom’s and, for example, offers higher surfing speeds than the “Blue Giant”.
As early as October 2022, Swisscom adjusted its plans under pressure from ComCo. Due to the dispute with the authorities, hundreds of thousands of blocked connections could not be put into use. The group is now installing direct lines from the telephone exchange to households.
Swisscom has been carrying out the expansion since autumn 2022, as required by ComCo, Swisscom spokeswoman Richon said. It has been known since Sunday to what extent road works are required.
The dispute between Swisscom and Weko has already led to parliamentary interventions in the Federal Palace.
In mid-February of this year, the Federal Council wrote in response to an interpellation that it regretted the delay in the expansion of fiber optic in Switzerland. There are no signs that Comco is exceeding its powers in the proceedings against Swisscom. (SDA)
Source:Blick
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