Deutsche Telekom yesterday accused the European Commission of "over-regulation", after Brussels confirmed an order by national regulators that forces the former monopoly to share its broadband network with rivals.

The Commission backed a regulatory measure proposed by Germany's Bundesnetzagentur that allows rival companies to offer broadband services to consumers, for example high-speed internet telephony, by using Deutsche Telekom's network. Brussels sees so-called "bitstream access" as crucial for the development of a thriving broadband market in Germany and other EU countries.