Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 379: To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources his policy in respect of the future role for wire, fibre optics, wireless and satellite to play in the telecommunications sector having particular regard to the need to compete with other European countries and worldwide economies; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19005/09]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin South, Green Party)
Link to this: Individually | In context

A variety of platforms using fixed, mobile and wireless technologies will be deployed to meet the needs of the telecommunications sector in relation to the roll out of new infrastructure and services into the future. The evolution to next generation networks will be driven primarily by the private sector, operating in a fully liberalised market.

As Minister for Communications, my role is to provide the policy framework that will facilitate the provision by operators in the sector of high quality infrastructure and services that will contribute to the development of a competitive knowledge society. This framework is based on the principles of service and technology neutrality and open access.

The following extract from ComReg's most recent quarterly report for Q4 of 2008 shows the position at that time regarding the provision of broadband over the various platforms. ComReg's published data as of Q4 2008

At the end of December 2008, there were 1,200,255 broadband subscriptions in Ireland. This represents a growth rate of 6.7% in the number of subscriptions for this quarter. Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) subscriptions, which had declined over the last couple of quarters, increased slightly by 0.6% in Q4 2008. Annual growth for FWA subscriptions is flat.