Federal Network Agency: Authority orders Internet access to a household for the first time

Highlights: Federal Network Agency: Authority orders Internet access to a household for the first time. The affected household invokes the right to access to telecommunications services. The trigger for the authority's decision was that an internet connection at the place of residence in question would only have been possible "at a consumer price that was too high" The legal requirements include “that telecommunications services should be offered at an affordable price” According to the authorities, this is around 30 euros per month. The company obliged in the current case has the option of having the Federal Network Agency's decision examined in court.

An internet connection is a must for many citizens. But in some places it is either slow or expensive. Now, for the first time, a provider has been obliged to provide a household with an affordable connection.

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Empty conduits for data cables: If the provider does not come voluntarily, he can be obliged

Photo: Patrick Pleul / picture alliance / dpa

For the first time, the Federal Network Agency has obliged an internet provider to provide a remote household in Germany with internet.

The Federal Network Agency announced on Monday in Bonn that a corresponding notice had been sent to the company.

It is about a household in Lower Saxony, where exactly was not disclosed, nor was the name of the company concerned.

In addition to landline providers such as Deutsche Telekom and Vodafone, the satellite internet provider Starlink is also an option.

The affected household invokes the right to access to telecommunications services, which has been in force in Germany since December 2021 and is intended to help people, especially households in remote regions, get a connection.

However, the legally guaranteed line is not really fast.

The download must reach at least ten megabits per second, the upload must reach 1.7 megabits and the latency (response time) must be a maximum of 150 milliseconds.

Compared to the data common in cities today, these values are very low.

In some places, however, even this minimum bandwidth would represent a significant improvement over the current situation.

High prices are not a solution

The trigger for the authority's decision was that an internet connection at the place of residence in question would only have been possible "at a consumer price that was too high".

However, the legal requirements include “that telecommunications services should be offered at an affordable price.”

According to the authorities, this is around 30 euros per month.

The current decision is the first order of its kind, and others are likely to follow soon.

According to the Federal Network Agency, around 130 complaint procedures are currently being examined.

According to the authority, there are currently an estimated 400,000 households in Germany that are considered underserved within the scope of the legal entitlement.

The company obliged in the current case has the option of having the Federal Network Agency's decision examined in court.

mak/dpa

Federal Network Agency: Authority orders Internet access to a household for the first time

High prices are not a solution

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