Uncontrolled disconnections, anarchic wiring, degraded technical cabinets… malfunctions occurring when connecting to fiber optics poison the daily lives of many French people. Just read the local press to be convinced. The voice of the North tells us that a 77-year-old resident of Boulogne-sur-Mer, dissatisfied with the installation carried out at his home, kidnapped the technician working on site.
Beyond the anecdote, grievances concerning the poor quality of service of the fiber network are becoming widespread throughout France. Elected officials from Haute-Savoie or the Paris-Saclay agglomeration community have recently stepped up to the plate. On May 2, the senators voted unanimously, including those of the presidential majority, for a bill aimed at responding to this discontent.
Ending the outsourcing cascade
Led by Senator (LR) Patrick Chaize, the text plans to tackle the root of the problem by putting an end to the cascading subcontracting with, at the end of the chain, poorly trained and pressured technicians responsible for carrying out the final connection of the fiber optic users.
The bill relating to the “Sustainability of very high-speed electronic communications networks” intends to regulate this “Stock” mode for “subcontracting to the commercial operator” and to limit the number of subcontracting ranks.
It is also for the senator from Ain to review the distribution of responsibilities between the infrastructure operator, which deploys the network, and the commercial operator – Orange, SFR, Bouygues Télécom, Free – which sells the subscription and pulls the fiber on the last meters to ensure the connection of the end user.
To prevent each actor passing the buck, it is the infrastructure operator who should take control and control the quality of the connection works. The bill also provides for the systematic communication of intervention schedules, the taking into account of minimum quality requirements in the choice of subcontractors or the establishment of a one-stop shop to centralize the problems encountered.
The text also provides for the strengthening of the powers of control and sanction of Arcep, the telecoms regulatory authority. Finally, the subscriber may suspend the payment of his plan in the event of a cut in his internet connection and, if the cuts are repeated, be compensated or even terminate his subscription.
A questioning of the France Very High Speed Plan
Despite the cross-party consensus obtained in the Senate, the examination of this text at the start of the school year in the National Assembly promises to be eventful. Apart from the local authorities which welcome its scope through the Avicca association of which Patrick Chaize is president, a sling has been formed to fight it.
Heard by the same Senate, Jean-Noël Barrot, Minister Delegate in charge of the digital transition and telecommunications, said that he did not wish to remove the Stoc mode but to correct it. Although imperfect, it has so far ensured up to 15,000 connections per day by exacerbating competition between commercial operators.
By removing this balance, it would be necessary to review a certain number of contracts, which would delay the deployment of fiber accordingly. The infrastructure operator could be tempted to favor certain commercial operators, Orange or SFR combining the two hats.
According The echoes, Laure de La Raudière, president of Arcep, would have judged the bill “very dangerous”. Finally, telecom operators will intensify their lobbying actions in the coming weeks. They have already made known all the evil they thought of this text by the voice of the French Federation of Telecoms (FFTélécoms).
For the operators, the questioning of the current framework would cause “a sudden stop” of connections and would call into question, neither more nor less, the success of the France Very High Speed Plan.