The EU parliament has reached an agreement on the details of the new regulatory body envisioned - and considerably diluted - by Viviane Reding, which should now come into existence in the next couple of months.

The details differ little from what was expected, despite weeks of negotiation with the various regulatory bodies. The name remains the same - Body of European Regulators in Electronic Communications - though we're now to know it as BEREC. It will be staffed with representatives from the regions along with ten support personnel.

There is still a commitment to number portability within one day, and the power for local governments to forcibly break up monopolies into infrastructure and service provision, with the infrastructure being shared with competitors.

The agreement still needs formal ratification, which should come within the next couple of months. We may have to wait a little longer though to see if BEREC is anything more than a talking shop for regulatory staff who fancy a secondment to Brussels. ®

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