Large operators like Deutsche Telekom, Orange, Telefonica, and others have long complained about IT rivals using their networks for freeriding purposes, claiming that since they account for a significant portion of internet traffic, they ought to pay a fee.

On Monday, Alphabet subsidiary Google rejected an effort by European telecoms operators to get Big Tech to contribute to network costs, arguing that the idea was outdated and harmful to consumers. Google also noted that the company was already investing millions in internet infrastructure.

The European Commission announced that it would seek input from the telecoms and tech industries on the matter in the upcoming months before putting forth any legislative proposals. Matt Brittin, president of EMEA business & operations at Google, made the remarks at the same time.

The concept, which was proposed more than ten years ago, could sabotage Europe's net neutrality or free and open internet, according to Brittin.

According to the text of a lecture he will give at a conference hosted by telecom lobbying group ETNO, he stated that introducing a 'sender pays' approach 'is not a novel idea, and would upend many of the ideas of the open internet.'

These arguments are the same ones we heard ten or more years ago, and no new information has emerged that would alter the position.

According to Brittin, it 'may have a negative impact on consumers, especially at a time of price hikes,' and she cited a BEUC report that detailed these worries.

By carrying traffic 99% of the way and investing millions of euros to do so, he claimed that YouTube owner Google had contributed to improving efficiency for telecoms carriers.

Over 23 billion euros were spent on capital projects in 2021, a large portion of which went toward infrastructure, according to Brittin.

These include 20 subsea cables worldwide, five of which are in Europe, six sizable data centres in Europe, and 20 locations in Europe for local network caches, which are used to store digital material.