The miracle of FTTH deployment in Spain

[Commentary] Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) deployment is booming in Spain. More than 15 years after the end of the legal monopoly, alternative operators are finally committing to deploying their own high-speed Internet access networks. After 15 years without Next Generation Network (NGN) deployment, suddenly all three operators – Orange, Tele2, and Jazztel -- decide to commit to costly investments in fixed networks. Why this spectacular turnaround? The FTTH miracle in Spain would not have been possible with regulated access to the FTTH network of the incumbent operator. At last, the dynamic competitive process for NGNs has been unleashed in Spain, and there will be one winner for sure: the consumer. [Herrera-González is Regulatory Economic Manager at Telefónica]