Operators Orange, SFR, Free and Bouygues Telecom have long expressed their dissatisfaction with the “Ifer” tax, which weighs on copper and fiber networks. Is finding common ground with the government good news for consumers?
After years of intense lobbying, the main French telecom operators managed to obtain a cap on the tax on network companies, the Ifer, which has been levied for around ten years to support local authorities.
The fixed Ifer, which applies to copper and fiber optic networks, should be capped at 400 million euros in the finance bill for 2024. Last year, it cost operators 381 million euros. The actors wanted a fiscal balance, in a context of technological transition.
A tax criticized for years by operators
The reform of Ifer has become urgent as the deployment of optical fiber accelerates. With the tax exemption period ending in 2024, operators anticipated a considerable tax burden. The capping at 400 million euros therefore relieves their financial situation, offering a welcome respite.
Flat-rate taxation is historically not really well received by operators, who believe that it penalizes them in their investments necessary for network expansion. Indeed, the more they developed their infrastructure, the more they were taxed. Orange, SFR, Free and Bouygues Telecom welcome a victory here, after having been mistreated this year, in particular by senators, who want to impose new obligations on them in terms of optical fiber.
The government also promised to reduce production taxes by 4 billion euros, with an annual reduction of 1 billion euros until 2027. This gesture made it easier for operators to accept this favorable revision from Ifer. . It remains to be seen whether it will be definitively integrated into the PLF 2024.
What are the consequences for consumer subscriptions?
This agreement between telecom operators and Bercy (which, for its part, refuses to talk about a victory for the first cities) marks a turning point and offers relief to a sector which invests billions of euros in modernization each year. of its infrastructure. ARCEP, the telecoms regulator, is also keeping an eye on things and slapped Orange on the wrist in the spring, encouraging the historic player to ensure its technological transition from copper to fiber without affecting the quality of the ADSL network.
Finally, regarding consumers, who have accumulated increases in fixed offers and mobile plans in recent months, we do not know whether this capping could clash with the pricing policy of operators. However, it is not impossible that the agreement and this reduction in the tax burden on operators will have repercussions on consumer subscriptions.
But it’s important to note that pricing decisions are multifactorial and depend on many things, such as market competition, operating costs and infrastructure investments. Customers will therefore have to remain attentive to future market developments to assess the possible benefits of this tax reform on their subscriptions.
Source : The echoes
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