Amazon is reportedly considering offering home Internet service in Europe. However, the company would probably not do so in the United States because US law doesn't guarantee wholesale access to existing networks.

Amazon hasn't commented publicly on the topic, which was raised today in a report by The Information (subscription required). The technology news site quotes "a person briefed on the discussion" as saying that Amazon is considering whether to offer Internet service over the networks of existing providers. Since Amazon reportedly doesn't want to build its own network, it would have to purchase wholesale access, which isn't available everywhere.

"In parts of Europe, such as Britain, broadband providers like British Telecom are required to offer wholesale access to their network to rivals," The Information noted. "A US offering would be tougher to pull off as US regulators don’t require cable operators to open up their networks to rivals."

Another potential landing spot for Internet service is Germany, "where the main provider Deutsche Telekom makes its network available to other broadband providers such as United Internet and Vodafone Germany."

Amazon could bundle Internet and video using its existing Prime service, creating a package similar to those offered by cable TV and Internet providers, the report said. Amazon did not return a request for comment from Ars today.

In the US, where consumers usually have at most one choice for high-speed broadband in any given city or town, ISPs generally haven't opened their wired networks to resellers. ISPs like AT&T have also filed lawsuits and used their control over utility poles to stall competitors like Google Fiber. Network "unbundling" requirements that could boost home broadband competition by requiring wholesale access were done away with more than a decade ago, and the Federal Communications Commission hasn't reinstated them.

There is plenty of wholesale access in the US mobile industry, which is far more competitive than the country's home Internet market. Google has taken advantage of this wholesale access to offer its own Project Fi wireless phone service. Amazon could consider offering wireless Internet in the US without building its own network, but an Amazon home Internet service in the US doesn't appear to be in the cards.