AVM sales analyzed: Honey smeared around the mouth - but what remains?
The future owner of AVM wants to better position the manufacturer in the long term. Sounds good - but will the FRITZ!Box tradition be lost?
(Image: c't)
- Benjamin Pfister
Just in time for the twentieth anniversary of the FRITZ!Box, the founders and managing partners of the manufacturer AVM have arranged their succession. This will certainly not change anything in the short term. But it does raise the question of the long-term perspective. In addition, the takeover announcement comes shortly after the Cartel Office announced fines. What prospects are there now for this local IT tradition?
The background
First of all, the sale did not come as a surprise: it was announced back in September 2023 that the founders were looking for a successor. The investor Imker Capital Partners has now acquired a majority stake in AVM. Imker states that it invests in both private and public securities, with a focus on Europe. They also emphasize the goal of long-term value creation on their narrow website. The founders of AVM - Johannes Nill, Peter Faxel and Ulrich Müller-Albring - retain minority stakes as shareholders and serve on the advisory board. After all: in 2023, 890 employees at AVM generated a turnover of 580 million euros, in 2022 the profit should have amounted to 80 to 90 million euros. However, AVM did not provide any information on the sale price.
According to current information, the transfer is planned for September 1. In a press release, AVM announced that it views the takeover positively, as Imker shares its vision for the future of AVM, according to Johannes Nill. The company wants to reposition itself with new products and increased internationalization. Sounds like a gentle change - but also not very concrete.
Sounds good - but will it be?
Nevertheless, the new investors will certainly bring a breath of fresh air to AVM. However, the question arises as to whether it is just a gentle breeze with the aforementioned internationalization and flexibilization - or whether the connection to the local needs and roots will be lost in a storm. The large fan community in Germany will certainly not accept this without complaint. Especially as home users are now increasingly using the term FRITZ!Box as a synonym for router. For years, the ISDN and DSL functions of the FRITZ!Box were in demand on the German market. However, these are becoming less and less important. Currently, the focus is more on the migration to fiber optic-based Internet connections and smart home integration. There is certainly still some potential there, although this market is price-sensitive. It remains to be seen whether functions such as the classic European DECT will take a back seat in the internationalization process.
What's more, the takeover announcement reached the world in the worst possible way. This is because it comes shortly after millions in fines were announced as part of investigations by the antitrust authorities into collusion on end consumer prices for AVM products.
Outlook
It is to be hoped that AVM and Germany as a technology location will follow up the positive portrayal in the press release with action. And this is important in order to avoid suffering a similar fate to Bintec-Elmeg, which recently ceased business operations - just a few months after Gigaset filed for insolvency. Perhaps the fan community should listen to the current national coach Julian Nagelsmann and see the future and challenges as an opportunity rather than a problem.
(anw)
