Ms Suvi Lindén, Minister of Communications, Finland - Baltic Sea Summit on the Digital Dividend - 9 June 2009

Ms Suvi Lindén, Minister of Communications, Finland
Baltic Sea Summit on the Digital Dividend
9 June 2009, House of the Estates, Helsinki

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I would like to wish you a warm welcome to Helsinki and to the Baltic Sea Summit on the Digital Dividend. I am delighted that [all] the members of the Baltic Sea family are around the same table to discuss a very topical and important issue. Our group represents not only policy-making and administration, but also economy and technology.

The political importance of radio spectrum has increased significantly. In the past, spectrum management was mainly considered as a technical challenge. Politicians did not necessarily pay very much attention to spectrum issues. But the technological development has changed the world drastically. Today our citizens and our economies rely more and more on wireless technologies and intelligent devices. This has taught us politicians to understand that radio spectrum is a scarce resource with enormous economic value. We also know that certain spectrum bands are more valuable than others. How we manage this invaluable resource is, to the largest extent, a political question.

We are here today to discuss one spectrum band that is particularly lucrative. It is the one which has traditionally been assigned for television broadcasting. As we all know, switchover to digital television frees up these valuable frequencies. This digital dividend can be used not only for increasing and improving television services, but also for other new and innovative communications services.

In Finland, the digitisation process went relatively smoothly. Especially considering how extensive the process was: nearly every citizen was involved, and how many practical problems had to be solved. The analogue television networks were switched off in August 2007, which released a significant amount of frequencies available for new purposes. The Finnish Ministry of Communications consulted widely with all relevant stakeholders on how to best use these frequencies. We actively participated in the discussions at European and international levels, particularly in the context of the World Radio Conference.

In June 2008 the Finnish Government reached a decision which satisfied all parties. The decision will open three new TV multiplexes for television services, in addition to the five existing ones. Two of these new multiplexes are on the so called VHF band and one new multiplex on the UHF band.

With regard to the so-called high band of the UHF band, the Finnish Government decided to follow the decision of the World Radio Conference of 2007. Altogether 72 megahertz of old television frequencies were assigned for digital mobile services. Making broadband available for everyone is a challenge in most countries. Broadband is no longer a luxury: all citizens need high-speed connections in their every-day life. However, it is not at all self-evident that high-speed connections will become available to all on commercial terms, especially not for those who are living in the sparsely populated areas. Many kinds of policy tools are therefore needed.

Mobile and wireless solutions can play an important role in responding to the challenge of broadband availability. Finland’s decision on digital dividend was justified in particular by the fact that network building in this spectrum band is very cost-efficient. This is the case especially in remote areas. It is also possible to exploit the existing GSM networks, which would reduce the costs even more. In brief, digital dividend could be one way to make high-quality communications services available to everyone.

Digital dividend is an opportunity – not only for Finland but for all countries. However, the countries need to act in a concerted fashion. If the digital dividend becomes fragmented across states, we will miss the opportunity.

In contrast, coordination with other countries provides scale advantages. The national markets alone are too small for the industry to develop technologies and services. A harmonised approach to the digital dividend would enable increased innovation and better and more affordable equipment and services. It would also enable users to benefit from these services while abroad. In order to get scale advantages, we will need as many countries as possible on board.

Co-ordination also helps us to avoid harmful interference. Spectrum coordination is, of course, exercised on many international and European platforms: WRC (World Radio Conference), CEPT (European Conference of Postal and Telecommunications Administrations), European Union as well as at bilateral level. Co-ordination is particularly needed between neighbouring countries. For this reason, the Baltic Sea family is a very relevant group of countries to discuss how to co-ordinate our activities in the best possible way. In order to avoid interference problems, we will need constructive discussion with all the neighbouring countries.

In this respect, I am particularly pleased that we have here today our colleagues from Russia. This is the first meeting of its kind in the field of radio spectrum policy. It will be extremely valuable for us to hear about the needs and plans of Russia concerning this particular spectrum band. There is no harmonised decision on digital dividend in the European Union either. I am convinced that we all can learn a lot from one another today. And I hope that this summit can be the start for a close and fruitful cooperation between the nine Baltic Sea Countries.

This year Finland and Sweden commemorate the events of the year 1809. The commemorations serve as a reminder of the long history during the Swedish reign and the turbulent period which ended with an autonomous Finland. As part of these celebrations, the Finnish and Swedish Governments held a historical joint meeting in Hämeenlinna a few weeks ago. The two governments agreed on intensifying cooperation in many important areas. One of these areas concerned the use of radio spectrum and, in particular, the digital dividend. This summit will, of course, be part of the intensified co-operation. Furthermore, we will broaden the co-operation to all Baltic Sea countries.

I am very pleased that State Secretary Leif Zetterberg from Sweden has promised to tell us how digital dividend will be handled in the European Union during the Swedish EU Presidency.

I am looking forward to the many other interesting presentations as well. I would like to take this opportunity and thank all the speakers in advance. Thanks are also due to all the stakeholders, GSMA in particular, for their contribution in organising this summit.

Finally, I would like to thank all of you for your participation. I am sure we will enjoy a lively debate at the end of the morning session as well as over lunch. I hope we could send a joint message that digital dividend represents a unique opportunity to improve connectivity. To that end we need to act in harmony.

With these words I would like to wish all of us a constructive summit!