The independent body that advises the German government has presented its 14th sector report on telecommunications. “If the forthcoming Digital Networks Act leads to deregulation too soon, competition will be severely hampered,” said Duso. 

With the Digital Networks Act, the European Commission plans to harmonise the regulation of telecommunications companies and thereby strengthen the single market. The Monopolies Commission recommends that companies with market power should continue to be subject to stricter regulation, at least until effective competition is guaranteed. In principle, the Monopolies Commission welcomes the fact that the planned Digital Networks Act provides important impetus for the European single market. 

Fibre-optic networks: ensuring competition in the long term  

A key concern for the Monopolies Commission is competition in the roll-out of fibre-optic networks. It recommends prioritising infrastructure competition. Where economically viable, two or more providers should roll out their own fibre-optic networks. This ensures competition in the long term – to the benefit of consumers. If, on the other hand, several providers use the same network, smaller providers are often at a disadvantage compared to the network operator. For this reason, free access to the networks should be reviewed through stronger oversight by the Federal Network Agency, in order to set binding standards and secure competition in the long term. With regard to residential connections, the Monopolies Commission recommends a minimum standard:

These recommendations come at a crucial time, as there are currently no clear rules governing home connections. The aim is to strike a balance between the pace of roll-out and competition in order to achieve the European gigabit targets.  

Copper-to-fibre migration: the Federal Network Agency must act more decisively 

The Monopolies Commission has identified the migration from copper to fibre-optic networks as an obstacle to fibre-optic roll-out. Without clear guidelines from the Federal Network Agency on the decommissioning of old copper networks, Deutsche Telekom could have strong incentives to roll out fibre first in areas where alternative providers are already active. This would drive competitors out of the market.

The Federal Network Agency should therefore shift from its current role as a facilitator to that of an active regulator. The Digital Networks Act should further strengthen the role of the federal authority. 

Internet interconnection: No competition concerns regarding data traffic between network operators and major content and service providers 

The Monopolies Commission currently sees no competition issues regarding data exchange between major telecoms companies and major content and service providers such as Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft and Netflix. This follows disputes over whether the latter should make additional payments to major telecoms companies such as Deutsche Telekom for the transmission of large volumes of data. Recently, there have been calls for a national or European dispute resolution body. The Monopolkommission rejects this. “Both sides need each other and negotiate on an equal footing. We see no reason to intervene in market dynamics via a dispute resolution body,” explains Duso. Additional payments can only be justified if they are the result of commercial negotiations – without any abuse of market power.