Bonn, April 7, 2021 With the founding of the eleventh regional group, the German Broadband Association (BREKO) completes the rollout of its state concept. Four years after founding the first regional representation, the association is closing the last gap on the BREKO map with the Saxony-Anhalt/Thuringia regional group and is represented by contact persons in all federal states.

The member companies of the German Broadband Communications Association (BREKO) expanding in Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia founded the Saxony-Anhalt/Thuringia regional group on April 1, 2021. Karsten Kluge (Managing Director of Thüringer Netkom) and Axel Reinicke (Head of Telecommunications and IT, DATEL Dessau) were appointed as regional group spokespersons. Sabrina-Maria Geißler (Managing Director of wittenberg-net) will be the deputy regional group spokesperson. Together, the three company representatives will now act as contact persons for political decision-makers in Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia.

Advancing fiber optic expansion in Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia

In both Thuringia and Saxony-Anhalt, there is still a lot of work to be done to achieve nationwide fiber optic coverage. However, both federal states are clearly committed to fiber optic expansion. As part of its gigabit strategy, for example, Saxony-Anhalt is focusing exclusively on the expansion of fiber optics to buildings. An important component of this strategy is the fiber optic pact co-initiated by BREKO, which Economics Minister Armin Willingmann signed together with 24 network operators in March 2021. In the pact, they pledge to invest in the expansion of fiber optics in Saxony-Anhalt and to cooperate more closely in the process. In return, the Ministry of Economic Affairs wants to further improve investment conditions, for example by speeding up approval procedures for fiber optic expansion, by providing official geodata free of charge for planning purposes and by promoting cost-reducing installation methods.

The newly founded regional group is also pursuing similar goals. Karsten Kluge, BREKO Vice President, Managing Director of Thüringer Netkom and regional group spokesman of the new Saxony-Anhalt/Thuringia regional group, on the planned steps: “Within the framework of the regional group, we want to identify the factors that hinder rapid expansion using specific case studies and look for solutions together with politicians. The optimization and acceleration of approval procedures and the use of modern installation methods are key points here.” Axel Reinicke from DATEL Dessau, another newly appointed regional group spokesperson, adds: “As a regional group, we want to work together with our members and the political players to promote the expansion of fiber optics in Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia. The focus here is on strengthening the framework conditions for a self-economic expansion and being an active partner in the design of funding instruments. We stand for fiber optic expansion as a regional project business and fair competition.”

BREKO completes country concept

The state level is particularly important for fiber optic expansion. For this reason, BREKO decided in 2018 to promote cooperation between the network operators organized in the association and the political decision-makers in the federal states and regions. To this end, the regionally based network operators elect regional group spokespersons who represent the BREKO positions externally and develop concepts for accelerating the expansion of fiber optics in the respective region together with political decision-makers. The great importance of regional work for fiber optic expansion was recently emphasized by Schleswig-Holstein Minister Dr. Bernd Buchholz at the BREKO Association Congress 2021: “Fiber optic expansion is taking place regionally. It is important for the success of the projects that the network operators and those responsible at municipal and state level work closely together. That’s why we very much welcome BREKO’s regional commitment.”

Ulla Meixner, Chairwoman of the BREKO Regional Committee and authorized signatory of Stadtwerke Flensburg, is also very satisfied with the development of the regional political work within the framework of the BREKO regional concept: “The first regional group in Schleswig-Holstein, which was founded in 2018 as a pilot project, has become a model for success. Contact between the stakeholders in the state was significantly intensified and quickly led to a fruitful exchange of experiences. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel in every federal state, but can often learn from each other. The contact between the regional players and the respective state politicians has helped us make significant progress. If the players involved in the expansion of a region work together, we can talk in concrete terms about the country-specific features. So all thumbs up from me – the regional concept is working. And I am sure that we will be able to make significant progress in the expansion of fiber optics in Germany and really make a difference locally.”

Acceleration of approval procedures at state level

The focus of the work in the federal states is on reducing bureaucracy, digitizing application and approval procedures and legislative initiatives relating to fibre optic expansion. To this end, the individual state groups are in close contact with the responsible ministries and state politicians, municipal umbrella organizations and other stakeholders in the expansion of fibre optics. The regional groups contribute their expertise to initiatives at state level, such as the development of a gigabit strategy. In addition to substantive work, the regional groups organize political events, parliamentary breakfasts and support state and local elections. The aim is always to drive forward the nationwide expansion of fiber optics to residential units.

About the BREKO

As the leading fiber optic association with more than 380 member companies, the Bundesverband Breitbandkommunikation e.V. (BREKO) successfully promotes competition in the German telecommunications market. Its members are clearly committed to future-proof fiber optics and are currently responsible for almost 75 percent of the competitive expansion of fiber optic connections to buildings and homes. The more than 215 telecommunications network operators organized in the association supply both metropolitan areas and rural areas with future-proof fibre optic connections. In 2019, they invested EUR 2.5 billion and generated a turnover of EUR 7.8 billion. Further information can be found at www.brekoverband.de.