BEREC Presents Work Programme for Next Year and Launches Public Consultation

The public consultation will run until 4 November, allowing stakeholders to provide their opinion on the draft document prior to its final adoption in December.

Zagreb, 10 October 2024 - At a meeting with stakeholders held on 9 October 2024, BEREC Chair Tonko Obuljen announced the launch of  a public consultation on the draft BEREC Work Programme 2025. In accordance with the European regulatory framework, which emphasises the importance of very high capacity networks (VHCN), promoting complete connectivity will remain a strategic priority for BEREC in the coming years Stakeholders are encouraged to share their opinions on the draft before its final approval at the regular BEREC meetings in December.

Draft BEREC Work Programme for 2025

In the draft document, BEREC outlines its work plans for the upcoming year, as well as key initiatives anticipated for 2026. Among the priorities for 2025 are promoting inclusivity by reducing the digital divide, ensuring network security, and supporting the sustainable infrastructure development.
While presenting the draft Work Programme, future BEREC Chair Robert Mourik (ComReg, Ireland) emphasised that the document was developed alongside the consultation process regarding the European Commission's White Paper “How to Manage the Needs of Europe's Digital Infrastructure?” This document serves as a foundation for the forthcoming Digital Networks Act, which will shape the future EU policy on digital infrastructure.

Development of Private and Public 5G Networks

The co-chairs of the Working Group on the Evolution of Wireless Networks presented the draft BEREC Report on developing private and public 5G networks in Europe. The report provides an overview of the use of private 5G mobile networks across European countries based on a questionnaire sent to national regulatory authorities. The draft document invites feedback on the needs, key factors, and case studies of private 5G mobile networks. The aim is to provide national regulatory authorities with new perspectives by establishing a common understanding of the definitions and classifications of these networks. Feedback on the document can be submitted until 29 November 2024.

Elections for BEREC Chair 2026 and New Composition of the Mini-Committee

At the 60th plenary meetings of BEREC, the Regulatory Board elected Marko Mišmaš, Director of the Agency for Communication Networks and Services of the Republic of Slovenia (AKOS), as Chair of BEREC for 2026. The Regulatory Board also elected Vice-Chairs for the upcoming year, who will be part of the "BEREC Mini-Committee," alongside the Chair of BEREC and the incoming and outgoing Chairs. The newly elected Vice-Chairs are Alejandra de Iturriaga Gandini, Director of Telecommunications and the Audiovisual Sector at the Spanish regulator CNMC, and Daniela Brönstrup, Vice President of the German regulator BNetzA.

The Regulatory Board also elected Liliia Malon, a commissioner of the Ukrainian NCEC, as a representative of participants without voting rights to complete the composition of the Mini-Committee for 2025.
 
Publicly Available Documents
A list of public documents adopted by BEREC at the 60th regular meetings (3-4 October 2024) is available on the BEREC website. The 61st regular BEREC meeting will take place in Slovenia on 5-6 December 2024, while the next stakeholder meeting will take place online on 11 December 2024.