Greece has become the seventh EU country to introduce a principle called “router freedom”. This means that consumers of any Internet Service Provider (ISP) can now use a modem or router of their choice instead of equipment provided by the ISP.

The freedom of choice for routers and modems in the EU is governed by two primary rules. The first comes from the Net Neutrality Ordinance in 2015, establishing people’s right to choose their own digital equipment. The second is one set of guidelines to identify the network termination point (NTP) in different network topologies, provided by the Body of European Regulators for Electronic Communications (BEREC).

These must be implemented by Member State National and Regulatory Authorities (NRAs) through respective legislation – a process prone to delays, political, external interference and regulatory bottlenecks.

In Greece, the national telecom regulator started implementing the necessary legal reforms in 2020. This month, the regulator finally passed new rules for router freedom in the country.

The new rules mark a pivotal moment for Greece, giving end-users the right to use the terminal device of their choice and to separate the routers from the ISPs’ optical network (ONT) equipment. However, they exempt fiber optic connections (FTTH), which are still under the domain of ISPs.

The latter is activated to assure on consumer protection, security and data protection, as well as the digital sustainability of the telecom sector, especially as other EU countries such as Finland And The Netherlands have set higher standards by allowing consumers to connect the fiber router directly to the public network.

Nevertheless, router freedom represents an essential step that all EU countries must take to protect consumers’ digital sovereignty. Forcing consumers to use an ISP-supplied device not only compromises their security and privacy, but also creates a monopolized market.