Berlin, 24.07.24 – The Federal Cabinet today passed the Telecommunications Network Expansion Acceleration Act (TK-NABEG). Dr. Stephan Albers, Managing Director of the German Broadband Association (BREKO), comments:

“More than half a year late, the traffic light coalition actually wanted to pass a law today to speed up the expansion of fiber optics and mobile communications. It has failed miserably. Despite months of discussions within the federal government, the law lacks the substance to facilitate and accelerate network expansion. The Bundestag and Bundesrat now have a duty to make fundamental improvements in order to create a framework for accelerating the expansion of fiber optics.

The German government has classified the expansion of digital infrastructure in the TK-NABEG as being in the “overriding public interest” and has thus put it on an equal footing with the expansion of other supply infrastructures such as renewable energies or electricity grids – the time limit until the end of 2030 is also justifiable as a compromise. In practice, however, fiber optic expansion will not benefit from this, as the ‘overriding public interest’ is only to apply to the expansion of mobile communications in the context of nature conservation assessments. The federal government is thus making it clear that fiber optic expansion is obviously no longer a priority for it.

This also means that the important effect of shortening the often lengthy approval procedures for fiber optic expansion and providing more planning security for the expanding companies in times of a tense market environment is lost. In addition, the traffic light government fails to recognize that fibre optic expansion and nature conservation are not mutually exclusive, but go hand in hand with smart planning and implementation. Today’s decision is therefore not only a defeat for the self-proclaimed progressive coalition, but also a missed victory for the digitalization of Germany!

What the traffic light coalition also fails to include in the TK-NABEG is a legal regulation for the transition from copper to fiber optic networks. This is absolutely necessary to ensure that the shutdown of copper networks by Deutsche Telekom is carried out in a competitive and consumer-friendly manner. Without regulation, there is a risk that Deutsche Telekom will use the switch-off strategically and thus harm the expansion of fiber optics. As BREKO, we have presented a corresponding concept for this.

The planned introduction of a flat-rate price reduction in the event that users do not receive the contractually agreed bandwidth is also incomprehensible. The right to a price reduction, which was only introduced at the end of 2021 and allows consumers to reduce payments if the promised internet speed is not available on a permanent basis, has proven its worth in practice. The planned tightening of this right lacks any factual basis. Furthermore, this is not a positive contribution to accelerating the expansion of the network.

The only positive aspect is the decision to exempt minor construction measures such as the so-called house tap from approval – the final, important step in supplying buildings with fiber optics. This can ensure that households where the fiber optic line has so far only been in the street can be connected to the fiber optic network more quickly and benefit from the advantages of a fiber optic connection.”