The debate over the deployment of 5G continues. While hardly re-elected in Grenoble the environmental mayor Eric Piolle reminded that since March he has asked for a moratorium on the issue, it is Xavier Niel's turn to step up to the plate. But it is this time to defend this technology.
"The attractiveness of France" at stake
On July 8 on the antenna of France Info , the CEO of Free said he was worried about "the attractiveness of France" if the country decided to give up 5G. According to him, the arguments of the ecologists, who put forward risks on health and the environment, are not admissible. "5G will be deployed in France in frequencies that have been used for a very long time, always, without having any problem or impact on health," says Xavier Niel. Above all, "the ecological footprint is better with 5G than with other past technologies," he says.
For this entrepreneur, it is actually not the operators to give up a new technology but consumers to learn to self-regulate. "It is not 5G that increases traffic, it is our use of mobile networks that increases consumption of these networks," he concludes.
"Is it useful?" "
It is not certain that these words succeed in convincing opponents of the project. The day before Delphine Batho, deputy EDS (Ecology, Democracy, Solidarity), also called for a moratorium on the issue. In addition to its impact on health, which remains according to her "a question", the former Socialist Minister of Ecology lamented on France 2 that there was "no democratic debate on 5G".
According to her, the real problem is that this technology "will increase the consumption of electricity and induce the fact that we will put in the trash thousands of terminals, smartphones ... Is it useful? Is it the priority to further accelerate this type of consumption? ”She asked herself.
Arcep, the telecoms regulator, has set auctions for September for the allocation of new 5G frequencies. The first commercial offers could be available in France before the end of the year.
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- ecology
- Xavier Niel
- High-Tech
- Telephony
- 5G