In a controversial decision, Germany adopted a revised telecom law that prevents competitors from using Deutsche Telekom’s new VDSL Internet network. The law, passed by Germany’s upper house of parliament in December, was published in the legal gazette today and will take effect tomorrow, reports Bloomberg.
European Media Commissioner Viviane Reding has threatened to sue Germany, which holds the EU presidency in the first half of 2007, unless it scraps some provisions in the legislation.  Deutsche Telekom, which is 32 percent owned by the government, has said it may halt spending on the network unless the company gets guarantees that it will have exclusive access long enough to recoup investments...that is what the govt. did.
Reuters: Telekom’s rivals have complained that the law temporarily blocks their access to the broadband market. Telekom argues it needs the protection because of the scale of its 3 billion euros ($3.9 billion) investment in the network.
Merck Finck telecoms analyst Theo Kitz said he expects to see a drawn out conflict between the EU and the German government. Kitz noted demand for the new network, which has enough capacity for live streaming of HDTV and makes it easier to use multiple connections at the same time, has not been particularly high.