Introduced in 2023, the Open Access Committee has several objectives, including promoting the idea of Open Access and the wholesale fibre business model, stimulating and encouraging wholesale-oriented regulation and discussing and exchanging experience and best practices. To deliver on its mission and based on the know-how of its member companies, the Committee touches upon several fields, including the regulatory framework for wholesale operators, the technical aspects of Open Access, IT solutions for network operators, promotion and education, and sales and marketing of Open Access-based fibre services.

You can expect a variety of new contents and resources generating from these discussions, that will soon become beneficial to the fibre community at large.

For those who are not familiar with the concept of Open Access, here are five main advantages of adopting this business model while deploying FTTH networks, as identified by the working group:

  1. Open Access is a model that allows for the deployment and operation of fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) networks in a cost-efficient way.  Building one infrastructure that is accessible to all service providers is in fact very cost-efficient, and has a significant impact on national coverage and market value. This cost-efficiency results from the fact that the same infrastructure is shared by all service providers, reducing the need for multiple infrastructures and saving on deployment and maintenance costs.
  2. The wholesale model can be very agile in administration, as there is no customer care. This means that service providers can focus on delivering services, while wholesale operators handle infrastructure maintenance and management.
  3. Service providers benefit from extensive coverage of the open access network without upfront investment, which makes it easier for them to provide services to customers without having to invest in expensive infrastructure.
  4. End-users benefit from a variety of services provided by diverse operators over the open access network. This means that customers have access to more choices in terms of services, pricing, and quality.
  5. Open Access drives competition of services in a very simple and transparent way. The wholesale operator does not compete with service providers, and service providers have equal terms and conditions of access. This creates equal opportunities for all service providers, promoting a more competitive and dynamic market.

Hans Lötzer

Applying for a Board of Directors position

 

First and Last Name:  Hans Lötzer

Company Name: Hamburg Commercial Bank AG

Current position: Head of Project Finance Analysis, Director 

Company Type: Finance/Investment


Biography:

I am a Director at Hamburg Commercial Bank for Project Finance Analysis and currently and board member and the Treasurer of the FTTH Council Europe.  Overall I have more than 25 years in experience in structuring and underwriting of large scale financial transactions.  In my current role I oversee HCOB’s Project Finance Analysis department which is responsible for Structuring, Execution and Portfolio Management of infrastructure loan transactions, including the bank’s significant digital infra structure book. As part of this, the bank maintains and steadily grows a very meaningful portfolio of Fiber transactions in Europe and the US.  Effectively all Fiber loans which HCOB is originating or is invited to participate in are passing my desk.  Prior to this role I held management for positions in credit risk management in a wide variety of asset classes including i.a. national and international Real Estate, LBOs, Corporates and Shipping. I managed those portfolios and teams throughout growth, but also recessionary cycles.  I hold a university degree in Business Administration with majors in finance and audit. Moreover I am a certified banker (Bankkaufmann) and a certified restructuring advisor.  In addition to my role as board member and treasurer of the FTTH Council I serve as a board member in a small non-for profit organization supporting research activities in the maritime sector.  I am married and live with my wife and two children north of Hamburg, Germany.

Position statement:

Efficient and European wide Fiber rollout and operation is one of the essential infrastructure backbones of our future life and economies.  When I was asked to assume the Board and Treasurer’s position after the resignation of a colleague I did this because of importance of Fiber roll-out and operation in Europe as well as the FTTH Counsil’s outstanding work to drive FTTH throughout Europe. I could experience this especially by attending the FTTH Councils Conferences over the last years as well as various Fiber related events  Through my current and former positions I do have a deep inside in a wide variety of fiber business models and approaches and also broad knowledge about challenges coming from construction, but also from (difficult) consolidation trends.  On the back of this background I am able to take an unbiassed but vocal view on the many fiber related main topics not only from a financial, but also strategic and operational perspective.  I am convinced that the view of a bank as one important source of capital in the fiber business should be represented at the board of the FTTH Counsil Europe.  Being part of the board in the recent past I experienced not only a lot of fun working with a group of very talented people, but also  think that I made valuable contributions the board’s work especially from a financial perspective.  Therefore I would be pleased to further dedicate time and effort to support the development of the goals of the FTTH Counsil Europe.

Your past role(s) and activities in the FTTH Council Europe:

Board Member and Treasurer, regular attendee of the FTTH Council Europe's Conderence.

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