French regulator to assess domestic roaming for businesses and public safety

Arcep is to investigate multi-network mobile plans that enable businesses and the public sector to access multiple networks with one SIM.

France’s communications regulator, Arcep, has issued a call for expressions of interest (CEI) for multi-network mobile plans, for businesses and public safety organisations among others.

It is also keen to establish a directory of operators that offer or would like to offer such plans – that is enabling customers to access several mobile networks from a single SIM, keeping the same phone number, and switching between networks as required. The scope includes machine-to-machine (M2M) commnications, as well as between people.

Security and safety

In addition to public safety organisations, according to Arcep, this facility is potentially important to companies looking to secure their assets and products, and one network might not provide sufficiently good and reliable coverage in all their locations.

As part of this CEI, Arcep is also querying stakeholders on the terms and conditions that should be attached to the sale and use of these products.

Disincentive?

It is aware, for example, that the hypothetical situation where these plans would be available to every enterprise in France could threaten existing plans, and dampen French operators’ incentive to invest in mobile networks to gain an edge in terms of coverage and quality of service.

This is also why Arcep confined the call for expressions of interest to business markets