Italy government approves single network plan as deal with TIM sought: papers

MILAN (Reuters) – Italy’s government has approved a single broadband network proposal that could be presented to Telecom Italia next week as part of a bid to resolve months of wrangling over control of the future network, several newspapers said on Thursday.

The plan, which would restrict Telecom Italia’s (TIM) control of the future network while allowing it to keep a majority holding, was presented to Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte and top ministers on Wednesday by the head of state lender CDP.

The papers, including La Repubblica, Corriere della Sera and Il Messaggero, said the road map for development of the network could be presented to the TIM board on Monday in the form of a Memorandum of Understanding.

Rome is pushing to create a single high speed broadband network open equally to all operators to close Italy’s digital divide with the rest of Europe and wants Telecom Italia to merge its fibre assets with rival operator Open Fiber.

However the plan has been held up by governance issues, with Telecom Italia insisting on maintaining control of a future network and Open Fiber supporting a wholesale-only business not controlled by TIM.

(Reporting by Stephen Jewkes; editing by James Mackenzie)