The EU telecommunications commissioner, Viviane Reding, who drafted the package, wants to make it easier for new entrants to compete with established operators in the €300 billion, or $440 billion, sector.
The EU assembly voted 597 in favor, with 55 against and 29 abstentions, on a proposal to force telecommunication companies to run their network and retail services as separate businesses to give competitors easier access to their networks.
Big operators like Deutsche Telekom and France Télécom opposed this "functional separation" measure, which would be a "last resort nuclear option" for national regulators if other pro-competition measures failed.
However, the assembly watered down another prime aspect of the package, Reding's proposal for an EU telecom "super regulator" that would also include Internet security.
It voted 490 to 105 to create a less powerful alternative, the Body of European Regulators in Telecoms, that would not include Internet security.
The body will be financed by a mix of EU and national funds. Reding wanted it paid for solely by the EU, a step she believed would ensure it was fully independent and not beholden to national governments that could be tempted to protect former state-owned operators.
"This vote is very good news for European consumers," said Martin Selmayr, a spokesman for Reding. "It's a strong signal for the single market in the EU."
National governments have the final say on the package and the assembly's first vote will form the basis of a joint deal with member states.
The assembly also voted to scrap Reding's plan to give the European Commission a veto over national competition "remedies."
It backed steps to make more efficient EU-wide use of radio frequencies freed up by broadcasters switching from analog to digital so that mobile phone operators can offer new services in several countries.
However, the vote ensures that member states remain in charge of spectrum usage nationally, and Reding's aim of stronger EU-wide decision-making on spectrum was diluted.
The final measure, to be voted on later, will concern improving consumer protection by strengthening the obligation on operators to provide a minimum service of specific quality at an affordable price.
