Kroes calls for more work on net neutrality

EU digital agenda commissioner Neelie Kroes has called for an investigation into issues related to net neutrality from BEREC, the body that groups together European electronic communications regulators.

Kroes said that there was a danger that barriers to an open internet could spring up from charges levied for priority access, the blocking of traffic and a lack of transparency. The move points to a possible toughening of the Commission’s stance on network neutrality, possibly bringing the EU more into line with the US. Kroes indicated she was concerned in particular about a lack of transparency around the practice of blocking or shaping web traffic, and wouldn’t hesitate to prohibit the practice if competition did not offer a sufficient remedy.

The results of the BEREC investigation are expected to be published by the end of this year.