Ahead of Denmark taking on the Presidency of the Council of the EU, lobbying has begun to ensure the Digital Networks Act is passed and crucially answers the pleas of the industry
Keeping children safe online looks set to be the priority for the Danish presidency, with only a lukewarm enthusiasm for the wider telecoms reforms being planned
On 10 June 2025, in Copenhagen, the GSMA brought together European policymakers, Danish telecoms CEOs and other stakeholders to discuss the priorities for Denmark as it takes on the presidency of the Council of the EU from 1 July. Jakob Willer (Director, Teleindustrien (the Danish operator association)), opened the event by stressing the importance of the telecoms sector in enabling Europe’s digital and economic ambitions. Vivek Badrinath (Director General, GSMA) followed with a keynote that set a sobering tone. He pointed out that while Europe had led in early innovation and standard-setting, the US and China have now pulled ahead in 5G availability and adoption. He attributed this primarily to European operators’ lack of scale, which has deterred long-term investment. Badrinath urged against further studies and reports, stating that the challenges are now well understood. Instead, he advocated action on well-known pain points: competition policy reform, clearer merger rules, reduced regulatory burdens, investment certainty and, above all, a renewed sense of fairness in the market.
Caroline Stage Olsen (Minister for Digital Affairs, Danish Government) delivered the first ministerial keynote, acknowledging connectivity not only as an economic enabler, but also as vital for security and resilience. She outlined two core priorities for Denmark’s upcoming presidency: creating a safer digital space for children and bolstering Europe’s digital competitiveness. While supportive of many of the Draghi Report’s findings, she expressed caution over calls for in-market mobile consolidation, suggesting it could raise prices and degrade quality for end users. For her, fewer, larger pan-European operators was a concern. She highlighted Denmark’s track record as evidence that it is possible to maintain both competition and sustained investment. More positively for the event’s organiser, she was more open to having a dialogue on the size of the regulatory burden – but that any intervention should come in the form of simplification rather than deregulation.
Strong calls for consolidation from the operator community, but only promises of simplification of existing regulatory burdens from the EC
A panel of CEOs and the EC then debated how to realise a true single market for telecoms. Renate Nikolay (Deputy Director-General, DG Connect, EC) underlined the urgent need to update Europe’s outdated regulatory framework, especially in terms of spectrum. The European Electronic Communications Code (EECC), she admitted, had not delivered the results intended, and that it was time to find “a more modern way of dealing with market failure”. She nodded in agreement with Michel Jumeau (CEO, TDC NET) when he said that the current rules are no longer fit for purpose. He called for immediate deregulation to unlock investment, and cited the example of Norway, where a shift from prescriptive telecoms rules to competition law had yielded strong results.
Morten Christiansen (Regional CEO, 3 Scandinavia and Austria) made the case for a more liberal consolidation policy, arguing that it wouldn’t necessarily result in higher consumer prices. Nikolay was again seen nodding in agreement as the UK competition authority’s use of behavioural remedies and pricing commitments was given as an example of tools to ensure consumer protection while enabling market rationalisation. Lars Thomsen (CEO, Telenor Denmark) warned against interpreting consolidation too narrowly through a Danish lens, while Christian Thrane (CEO, Nuuday) challenged the prevailing policy focus on low end user pricing, calling instead for a fundamental reset. Gert Vinther Jørgensen (Group CEO, Norlys) stressed that given the contribution of telecoms to the economy, it should be a priority in policy terms, with Thrane warning that if we fail to stimulate more investment then all industries fail as they rely on that connectivity. Christiansen argued that with consolidation, operators could achieve cost synergies that would allow them to invest more without raising prices – something crucial as networks shift from being commercially driven to underpinning national resilience and security.
Not wishing to be drawn further on the debate around consolidation, Nikolay tried to offer something within her gift to the panellists. She promised that upcoming initiatives like the Digital Omnibus would seek to rationalise overlapping and inconsistent regulatory requirements around data, cybersecurity and AI. She acknowledged that the GDPR and other frameworks were developed in siloes, leading to fragmented implementation and complexity, especially around reporting requirements. She framed the EC’s direction as a broader “fit check” for the entire digital rulebook.
With widespread vulnerabilities and threats emerging in new areas, there were calls for more joined-up thinking when it comes to resilience and critical national infrastructure
The second ministerial keynote was delivered by Torsten Schack Pedersen (Minister for Resilience and Preparedness, Danish Government). He acknowledged that Denmark’s advanced digital economy creates new vulnerabilities. Given the timing of Denmark’s Council presidency, he committed to making the successful implementation of the NIS2 Directive a national priority. He also recognised that investments to secure and harden networks were substantial and essential, reinforcing the telecom sector’s role as a backbone of national security.
The panel that followed explored the security and resilience of Europe’s digital infrastructure. Ben Wreschner (Group Regulatory Policy Director, Vodafone Group) described the threat landscape as vast and growing, encompassing land, sea and soon space. He stressed the importance of cross-border network resilience and the need for greater information sharing on cybersecurity threats. He cited a Vodafone Portugal cyberattack where swift recovery was possible thanks to data backups located outside national borders – illustrating both the value of cross-border preparedness and the potential pitfalls of data localisation policies.
Eirik Øwre Thorshaug (VP – Public Affairs, Telenor Group) added that private sector actors often lack the security intelligence that governments have. He suggested Europe could learn from Norway’s model of closer collaboration. Dr Marnix Dekker (Deputy Head of Resilience of Critical Sectors Unit, ENISA) called for a single EU-wide security framework and warned against the inefficiencies of investing in poor quality or redundant cybersecurity tools. Jean-Marie Mele (Group CISO, Orange) raised concerns about legacy infrastructure such as 2G and 3G, which remain in use and are difficult to secure. He pointed to the challenge of maintaining a workforce with the knowledge needed to manage this older technology.
Karsten Brinkmann (CISO, TDC NET) addressed the need for better coordination between telecoms and energy providers. He asked whether telcos should build their own battery backups or if utilities should bear that responsibility. He warned of duplicated investment and criticised the lack of policy forums addressing this critical issue. Wreschner echoed this point, noting that even the classification of telecoms as critical infrastructure varies by EU Member State. He closed with a stark warning: Europe has become a taker, not a maker, of digital technology and innovation. The continent is standing still while others – namely the US, China and South Korea – move ahead.
