On 29 March 2019, the UK regulator Ofcom set out its initial approach for the next Fixed Telecoms Market Review, which will cover the years 2021–25; for the first time, a market analysis will have a time frame longer than three-years. Ofcom’s main objective is to ensure competition continues to develop, while at the same time supporting the recent surge in fibre investment, resulting from the rise of alternative operators which are seeing a strong investment case, particularly in urban areas, and ensuring Openreach continues to deploy fibre to improve connectivity and enable 5G in rural areas. The regulator also set out measures to facilitate migration from copper to fibre, by phasing out regulation and price controls on copper products.

The European Commission is currently seeking input on the review of its Recommendation on relevant markets, which has to be completed by the end of 2020 to comply with a provision of the Electronic Communications Code. While at this stage the EC is not setting out what that will look like, it is likely that some markets will be removed from the list of those subject to ex-ante regulation, in line with the outcome of previous reviews. However, the EC is also hinting at the creation of a specific market for wholesale physical infrastructure access, which shows how the review is focused around the development of 5G and fibre networks.