Over the past two decades the regulation of electronic communications in the European Union has undergone significant development. These changes have been motivated by a combination of technological innovations and the adoption of new regulatory strategies consistent with a liberalisation of the sector and the aim of creating an integrated and vigorous market for electronic communications across EU member countries. This paper explains and analyses the main changes in the regulatory framework that the EU institutions have created. Several challenges were overcome in the process of developing a harmonised regulatory framework and effective intra-European competition, but other challenges remain. The paper discusses the lessons learned, and identifies a number of future regulatory issues that may need to be resolved.