19 Jan. BNetzA’s regulation marks the end of the copper era – association backs proactive role of the regulator
Bonn, 19. January 2026. The regulatory concept presented by the Federal Network Agency for consultation today marks an important step away from copper and towards fibre optic networks. “The Federal Network Agency has set out concrete requirements, timelines and migration conditions that could make a fair, transparent and competition-compliant transition process possible,” analyses VATM Managing Director Dr Frederic Ufer. “The fundamental direction with choice, a variety of services on the networks, open access and investment security is correct. We support the regulator’s clear alignment of the planned measures with a competitive target framework. This has long been demanded by the VATM.”
This applies above all to the switch-off process under Section 34 of the Telecommunications Act (TKG). Ufer welcomes the fact that the authority has clearly recognised that Telekom alone should not decide on the shutdown of the copper network in the future. Competitors and the Federal Network Agency can also initiate this process once the migration conditions have been met. “What is important is that shutdowns are carried out in a non-discriminatory and rules-based manner, regardless of who has built fibre in a given area.”
Investors, and above all service providers, need planning security during the switch-off process. “Transparency through a nationwide migration plan, outlining start and end dates as well as key milestones and updated continuously, is essential for all market participants.” warns Ufer. “Telekom must be held significantly more accountable here – the legal framework already provides the necessary scope. The Federal Network Agency must therefore not wait for the earliest requirements of the Digital Networks Act (DNA) in 2027 but must now take a firmer approach with Telekom.”
The managing director says the proposals to make access obligations compulsory under symmetrical regulation, in the amendment to Section 22 of the Telecommunications Act, are fundamentally wrong. They would limit the entrepreneurial freedom of these models and reduce the incentives to build networks under the open access model in the first place. It is the market competitors who are developing partnerships based on voluntary open-access models, helping to drive fibre expansion. “The growing number of voluntarily agreed partnerships, now in the triple digits, shows that open access is becoming established. The Telecommunications Act already allows the Federal Network Agency to take action if access is refused. This system should not be fundamentally changed without good reason, as doing so would carry significant risks for competition as well as for investment security and the pace of investment in the market,” Ufer notes.
The authority has correctly recognised the importance of the business customer market and the problem of Telekom’s strong market power. The Federal Network Agency’s consideration of longer deadlines as an exception for specific business customer issues is therefore very welcome.
