Once approved, the project will allow fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) solutions to be offered to households and businesses in 1,610 municipalities across the country by 2025.
The co-investment offer is current under review by The Italian Communications Authority (AGCom) in accordance with the new European Electronic Communications Code.
The offer is based on “open” the co-investment model envisaged by the new Code and is the first example of a nation-wide project of this kind in Europe. Application of the new provisions of the Code will encourage investments in fibre and speed up the transition from legacy copper networks to the new infrastructure.
Geographically, the co-investment offer relates to close to 75% of property units in the grey and black areas of the country and will supply wholesale access services to the FTTH network.
Interested operators will be able to join the co-investment programme for smaller geographical areas than the entire project, this includes individual municipalities.
In line with the new European Code, the co-investment participation model is based on the sharing of the long-term risk of building the new FTTH network.
According to TIM, the level of risk is decided on a non-discriminatory basis, by each co-investor depending on their characteristics and business choices.
In addition, investors can sign up to the project after 2021, for a fee as initial investors accept greater risks and commit their capital before the others, as established by the new Code.
The news comes as FlashFiber, the fibre network owned by TIM – the former Telecom Italia – and Fastweb, owned by Swisscom, and private equity frim KKR came together to create a national wholesale-only fibre network – FiberCop.
