France to invest €240m in funding public fibre networks

On 3 September 2020, the French Government unveiled a €100bn stimulus package¹ to help the country recover from the economic slump resulting from COVID-19. Of this total, €240m will be allocated to public initiative fibre networks with the aim of reaching 100% fibre coverage in France.

The French National Broadband Plan

This stimulus package should be seen in the context of France’s wider broadband strategy, the National Broadband Plan (France Très Haut Débit). This was launched in 2013 with the aim of providing access to high-speed broadband (30 Mbps) for the entire country by 2022, using a mix of several different technologies (fibre optic, copper networks, coaxial cables and wireless technology), at a total cost of € 20 billion. In February 2020, the Government announced additional funding of €280m to achieve nationwide fibre coverage by 2025 (and so moving back the target date by several years).

Further funding of €240m

By investing a further €240m in the French National Broadband Plan now, the Government wishes to send a strong signal to all stakeholders that it is committed to the 2025 target. It hopes that this funding will accelerate a widespread economic recovery based (at least in part) on fibre roll out, making the country more resilient to future economic shocks.

The funding will be used to tackle not only the long term financial impacts of the COVID-19 crisis but also to connect housing and commercial premises located in remote areas of the country (of which there are many). However the plan does not provide any further detail on how the funds will be allocated and whether certain type of investments projects will be privileged. Guidelines for eligibility and application forms will be published in autumn 2020 with funds being allocated in 2021. The funds will be made available on a priority basis to local communities carrying out fibre optic roll outs, in order to encourage more such projects to be launched in 2021.

Timetable

The 2025 target for 100% coverage is admittedly quite ambitious. France currently lags behind its neighbours, ranking 16th out of 35 European countries in terms of FFTH subscriptions per household². The new funding announced last week is nevertheless a step in the right direction.

¹ Copy available at https://www.economie.gouv.fr/files/files/directions_services/plan-de-relance/annexe-fiche-mesures.pdf
² FTTH Council Europe - Panorama, Markets at September 2019, FTTH Council Europe Webinar, 23 April 2020.