Market functioning in network industries: electronic communications, energy and transport

Network industries, such as electronic communications, energy, and transport, are of vital economic importance because the infrastructure and services that they provide underpin the functioning of modern economies. To improve the functioning of markets in these essential sectors, the EU has pursued a three-pronged strategy: to introduce competition into economically inefficient monopolistic structures; regulate infrastructure; and transform fragmented national markets into a larger, more efficient, integrated EU market. The main objective of this report is to provide a comparative assessment of market functioning in EU Member States in the electronic communication, energy, and transport sectors. It assesses Member States’ progress in market opening and competition and highlights potential market distortions that can hinder the proper functioning of these markets.