Deutsche Executive Director Telekom Tim Hottges speaks during the Mobile World Congress, the world’s largest mobile fair, in Barcelona on March 3, 2025.
Lluis gene | AFP | Getty Images
Barcelona – Europe needs its own version Elon muskThe so -called Government Efficiency Department, Deutsche Executive Director Telekom Tim Höttges said on Monday, while he gave a scary petition for the region to reduce bureaucracy on the telecommunications industry.
Europe is lagging behind peers such as the US and China when it comes to key technological innovations such as artificial intelligence and 5G networks of the next generation, Höttges said during an event at a panel at the World Congress of Mobile Mobile Devices in Barcelona.
“What Europe needs is Doge,” Höttges said to the audience, speaking with Vodafone’s Margherit Dell Valle, Orange’s Christel Heydemann and Marc Murtra Telefonica.
“We need an initiative to reduce this bureaucracy and this administration here, because there are tens of thousands of people sitting there and managing our industries,” he added.
Trump’s administration announced only plans to start Doge last year. The initiative, led by billionaire Tesla Boss Elon Musk, was tasked with reducing the costs of the Federal Government Administration.
Doge is really not a government agency – and his leader Musk is not an elected official. Since its establishment, Doga has sought to reduce consumption in the Federal Government agencies, Making huge cuttings of jobs In defense, education and energy departments.
Höttges said he numbered all the regulators that Deutsche Telekom deals with – including the media guards, Cyber - security and privacy – and that the total number came about 270.
He added that, unlike other European Telcos, Deutsche Telekom is able to get most of the US revenue in the US wireless T-Mobile network.
Renewed cry for consolidation
As telecommunications companies often worked in previous readings of MWC, Höttges has renewed a call to Europe to reduce obstacles to market consolidation in the industry.
“There is no reason for each market to work with three or four operators,” he said. “We should build a European individual market.”
However, analysts do not see the consolidation of the industry as a “silver bullet” for the sector. Global Telecommunication PWC Florian Gröne said that although the EU regulation led to “fragmentation” in the region, it is not sure that it agrees with “the” industrial mantra that you need a con -border border consolidation and everything will be fine. “
“A vertical integrated Telco model has its purpose, but it is not a real lens for achieving results and from the perspective of the company and from a regulatory, more social perspective,” Gröne told CNBC at the invitation of last week in front of MWC.
Höttges added that Europe should seriously consider to charge US technological giants like Amazon,, Microsoft and Netflix Compensation for the use of a mobile carrier network, an initiative that was proposed multiple times in the past.
“It’s a free service we offer, because there are no mutual connections. And I think even they should contribute a little to lead to the investment needs of our industry in order,” Höttges said.
