An established authority in the field, this is the core reference work for practitioners on electronic communications in the European Union. Giving insight into the regulations, the work provides a thorough analysis of the competition rules and regulatory framework applicable to electronic communications networks and services within the European Union. Electronic communications encompass all forms of electronic transmission of information, including telecommunications, broadcasting, and the internet. This second edition is updated to reflect the new regulatory package which has made changes to some of the fundamental mechanisms. A brand new section on data protection also features, giving an authoritative account of the legislation in the important new area of privacy protection in electronic networks. Detailed coverage of the recent case law of the European courts is provided including the European Commission's cases on the coordination mechanism for the relations between national regulatory authorities. The author team provides a wealth of expert knowledge on both regulation and general competition law, combining the first hand experience of Peter Rodford and rigorous academic analysis from Paul Nihoul. Peter Rodford is a former Head of the European Commission unit responsible for regulatory policy in electronic communications and took part on behalf of the Commission in the recent negotiation with the European Parliament and Council on the amendments to the EU regulatory framework.