Landline and mobile communications: How dissatisfied Germans are with their providers

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Mobile phone mast: 5G networks have so far reached relatively few users in Germany

Photo: W. Filser / ddp

The sluggish expansion of 5G and fiber-optic networks makes Germans doubt their telecommunications providers. These are the findings of a previously unpublished online survey conducted by the management consultancy BearingPoint in eight European countries. In Germany, only 13 percent of customers are satisfied with the performance of their mobile network. In the other EU countries, the average figure is 61 percent.

There is a similarly wide gap between the values in the evaluation of fixed-network quality: Only 14 percent of Germans give their providers good marks, compared to an average of 58 percent in the other countries. The Netherlands leads the way in terms of network satisfaction with 85 percent for mobile networks and 81 percent for fixed networks. A total of 10,850 consumers were interviewed for the survey.

Investments are necessary

According to the study, one of the main reasons for dissatisfaction is the lack of availability of current technologies. "Customers with 5G and fiber optic access are the happier customers," says Julius Hafer, Partner at BearingPoint. However, only 17 percent of German customers stated that they use a fiber-optic connection. 23 percent have access to the fast 5G mobile network. This is a dilemma for providers: dissatisfied customers are less willing to invest even higher amounts in their connections. However, an increased willingness to pay is a prerequisite for the billion-dollar expansion of the networks.

In principle, some Germans would be willing to pay more for more performance, the study shows. For example, just under a third would accept a surcharge for better mobile phone quality. As many as 42 percent of respondents in Germany would be willing to pay more for more performance in video streaming. However, improvements to the networks do not always reach the customer: Only 58 percent of the people surveyed in Germany said they were more satisfied with the quality of 5G connections than with the older 4G technology.

Meanwhile, price increases without noticeable performance improvements are being punished. In its latest annual report, Vodafone blames tariff increases for a noticeable decline in cable and DSL contracts.

TMK