Gigabit networks: EU Commission approves billions in state funding
German subsidies for the expansion of fast broadband networks in "gray spots" can be increased by EUR 26 billion to EUR 38 billion by 2028.
Cable drums for fiber optics in a new development area.
(Image: juerginho/Shutterstock.com)
On Tuesday, the EU Commission approved the realignment of the German state aid scheme for the promotion of gigabit networks. Brussels had originally approved the state aid in the fall of 2020. It was due to expire at the end of 2025, but will now be extended until the end of 2028. At the same time, the funding can be increased by 26 billion euros to a total of 38 billion euros. The increase is to be financed in equal parts by the federal government and the federal states and local authorities with 13 billion euros each.
The further development of the federal broadband funding program, which was launched in 2020 by the then Infrastructure Minister Andreas Scheuer (CSU), is primarily about closing "grey spots". In contrast to "white spots" without any internet connection, these are areas where there is already - comparatively slow - broadband coverage. This is to be upgraded with gigabit-capable connections: The German government - in line with the EU - has promised gigabit for all households and companies by 2030. The funding program aims to provide end users with data transmission rates of at least 1 Gbit/s in download and upload - i.e. symmetrically.
Commission: Bandwidths tripled
Based on the revised requirements, the federal and state governments can now grant subsidies for areas in which the following conditions are met: So far, only a network that provides data rates of between 100 and 300 MBit/s for downloads and 150 MBit/s for uploads may be available there. Furthermore, it must not be possible to upgrade the existing broadband infrastructure to provide speeds of at least 1 Gbit/s for downloads and 150 Mbit/s for uploads by means of minor investments. Furthermore, no investment in a network by a private operator with data rates of at least 1 Gbit/s for downloads and 150 Mbit/s for uploads may be planned within the same time horizon. The initial "take-up threshold" of 100 Mbit/s for state expansion aid was actually supposed to be abolished without replacement at the beginning of 2023.
The new edition will finance infrastructure such as empty conduits, cable branches, nodes or unconnected fiber optic lines as well as active equipment for gigabit networks. The aid is granted in the form of direct grants and covers up to 100 percent of the eligible costs. Commission Vice-President Margrethe Vestager hopes that this will at least triple the bandwidth and "significantly improve the availability of gigabit broadband networks in underserved areas". Industry associations such as VATM and Breko, on the other hand, are very skeptical about the government cash injections. According to them, fiber optic expansion projects in Germany run faster, more efficiently and more market-oriented without taxpayers' money than their subsidized counterparts, which are by nature lengthy and involve many bureaucratic challenges.
(olb)
