Neelie Kroes (pictured), the outgoing vice president of the European Commission responsible for the Digital Agenda, warned the telecoms sector “is its own worst enemy” and needs to change if it is to move forward.

Speaking at a European Telecommunications Network Operators (ETNO) event last night, Kroes said the message from operators that regulatory changes are needed is clear, but that they must also play their role.

Looking at the relationship of the telecoms sector with the digital future of the region, Kroes said operators will need to be “diverse and dynamic” and be able to explore “new services and new business models”.

The telecoms sector should offer “convenience, competition and choice”, according to Kroes, in order to offer consumers and businesses “tailored products they are prepared to pay for”.

The sector should also be able to invest and innovate, with economies of scale that go beyond borders and allow operators to compete on a global basis. Kroes also stressed the role public investment could play in this.

The politician welcomed the moves ETNO is making to bring about change in the mobile industry, with the Think Digital manifesto it announced this week. “It is a positive vision: but now it needs to be acted on, and implemented,” she said.

She went on to say that digital technology has a central role to play in addressing the challenge of getting the European economy “back on track” and finding jobs for the next generation of young people.

The digital future of Europe has to be “connected, open, and secure” with policy makers, regulators and operators needing to be “swift and responsive to deal with digital developments”.

Kroes also warned against deregulation being interpreted as keeping protected national markets: “You can’t have consolidation on national markets without having a single regulatory framework contributing to a genuine single market.”

Sticking with market consolidation, Kroes said choice and a range of services and suppliers is a positive, but that some markets are “too small to justify multiple operators, with too few economies of scale for that to be efficient”.

Referring to the connected continent project put forward under her leadership, Kroes said: “Today’s European market is fragmented, ring-fenced, and subscale. My dream is to change that. To see equally open and unified markets on both sides of the Atlantic”.