Berlin, November 18, 2022 - The German Broadband Communications Association (BREKO) is taking account of its continued membership growth: At today's General Meeting, which was held in Berlin for the first time since 2019, the member companies elected a new BREKO Board of Directors and added four new members. Norbert Westfal was confirmed in office as BREKO President.

Bonn/Berlin, 18.11.2022 - "The publication of the draft standard is an important step towards significantly greater use of modern laying methods. Trenching, milling and ploughing methods are a central building block for fast and efficient fiber optic expansion and thus also for achieving the federal government's expansion targets.

Bonn/Berlin, 17.11.2022 - The BREKO Annual Conference, the central political event of the telecommunications industry, took place today at the Estrel Berlin, where the industry and politicians discussed the framework conditions for the further expansion of fiber optics. The implementation of the gigabit strategy to date and the question of what measures need to be taken to achieve the German government's fiber optic expansion targets were the common thread running through the conference, which was attended by prominent figures. The industry made specific demands on politicians to ensure that fiber optic expansion is not jeopardized against the backdrop of the current energy and economic crisis. Federal Minister Volker Wissing focused his remarks on "funding with a sense of proportion" and the interaction of all players in the fiber optic expansion.

Berlin, 25.10.2022 The associations Bitkom, BREKO and VATM comment on today's decision by the Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport Affairs (BMDV) to prioritize the funding of fiber optic expansion in the future: "We welcome the fact that the Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport Affairs (BMDV) has today set out the framework for the future funding of fiber optic expansion and defined central cornerstones. This ensures predictability for all parties involved and focuses on the common goal of implementing nationwide fiber optic expansion in Germany as quickly as possible.

Berlin, October 24, 2022 On October 23, the news agency dpa reported on a "fire letter" from 14 federal states and the leading municipal associations to the Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport Affairs (BMDV). In the view of the associations Bitkom, BREKO and VATM, the statements made in this letter by the federal states and municipal umbrella organizations regarding the funding freeze are a slap in the face for all companies that invest in the expansion of fiber optic networks in Germany and thus make a significant contribution to the fact that Germany is now making good progress in the expansion of high-speed Internet. Instead of an emotionally driven, sham public debate, Bitkom, BREKO and VATM are calling for a fact-based discussion and solutions that focus on prioritizing municipalities with particularly poor coverage.

Berlin, 19.10.2022 The German Broadband Association (BREKO) comments on the funding freeze for broadband expansion announced today by the BMDV: "The large number of funding applications received and the resulting necessary funding freeze show that the 'natural prioritization' of eligible areas announced by the federal states is not working. This development underlines very clearly that we need clear rules and effective prioritization for the distribution of funding for fiber optic expansion to ensure that particularly disadvantaged areas are supported and that taxpayers' money is used in a targeted manner.

Munich/Bonn, October 19, 2022 The Bavarian state government agrees with telecommunications network operators, the Bavarian municipal umbrella organizations as well as the Federal Association of Broadband Communication (BREKO) and the Association of Municipal Enterprises (VKU) on measures to provide the state with nationwide fixed and mobile network coverage "at gigabit level" by 2025.

Bonn, October 17, 2022 As the leading fiber optic association, the German Broadband Association (BREKO) awards telecommunications network operators with a seal of quality. The award of the "Real Fiber" quality seal is linked to criteria such as the willingness to invest in fiber optic networks to buildings and homes (FTTB/FTTH). Another prerequisite is that the award-winning company gives priority to the expansion of these genuine fiber optic connections in relation to other technologies.

Berlin/Brussels, October 14, 2022 The German Broadband Association (BREKO) today published a position paper on the "fair share" debate gaining momentum in Germany, in which major European telecommunications companies such as Telekom, Orange, Vodafone and Telefónica ("big telcos") are calling for big tech companies to share the costs of network expansion. In the view of BREKO, which represents the majority of alternative telecommunications network operators in Germany, the debate on the fair participation of big tech companies in network costs must be conducted constructively and with an open mind, including the alternative network operators as drivers of fiber optic expansion in Germany and many European countries.

Berlin, 29.09.2022 - Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz today presented the "Economic defense shield against the consequences of the Russian war of aggression" together with Vice Chancellors Robert Habeck and Christian Lindner. The plans include the introduction of an electricity price brake for consumers and all companies. The German Broadband Association (BREKO) has issued the following [...]