Bun­desnet­za­gen­tur ex­tends mo­bile spectrum sub­ject to con­di­tions

Year of issue 2025
Date of issue 2025.03.24

The Bundesnetzagentur has today issued its decision on extending the spectrum usage rights at 800 MHz, 1800 MHz and 2600 MHz for an interim period of five years. The extension is subject to conditions, in particular coverage obligations and other requirements. The Bundesnetzagentur’s decision was taken in consultation with the Advisory Council.

"We are improving mobile coverage for all consumers and promoting competition. The extension of the spectrum usage rights is accompanied by ambitious coverage obligations. A coverage obligation specifically for rural areas and an obligation relating to surface area will promote equivalent standards of living in urban and rural areas. Coverage with at least 50 Mbps must be provided for at least 99.5% of the country’s surface area as from 2030," said Klaus Müller, President of the Bundesnetzagentur. "We are further strengthening competition in the mobile market and are linking the extension to special arrangements for the new entrant 1&1. A negotiation requirement will secure the position for service providers. We have made our guidelines for these negotiations clearer again following extensive consultation with all parties. We have taken a balanced decision in the interests of all stakeholders."

Five-year extension

The spectrum usage rights expiring at the end of 2025 will be extended by five years. The aim is to bring the expiry dates of the usage rights in line with other usage rights that are due to expire at a later date. This will enable more spectrum to be made available for award at a later stage and regulation-induced scarcity to be avoided. It will also enable market developments to be taken into account in later proceedings. This applies to the fourth network operator, 1&1 Mobilfunk GmbH, as well. A larger framework for proceedings incorporating additional usage rights that are due to expire at a later date will offer companies more opportunities for accessing spectrum.

Strengthening rural areas

The extension of the usage rights is accompanied by obligations for the further rollout of the mobile networks. The ambitious but reasonable coverage obligations aim to strengthen rural areas in particular. At the same time, focus is being placed on uninterrupted mobile broadband coverage along transport routes.

The obligations require:

• coverage with at least 50 Mbps for at least 99.5% of the surface area across the country as from 2030;
• coverage with at least 100 Mbps for at least 99% of households in thinly populated municipalities in each federal state as from 2029;
• coverage with at least 100 Mbps for all federal roads from 2029;
• coverage with at least 50 Mbps for all regional roads and inland waterways of the federal core network as from 2029; and
• coverage with at least 50 Mbps for all district roads from 2030.

All mobile network operators are required to cooperate in jointly establishing infrastructure along rail routes and to enter into negotiations with railway infrastructure undertakings on jointly using the infrastructure.

Mobile network operators are required to continue to report regularly on progress in rollout and on further rollout plans.

Promoting competition

Having assessed the competitive conditions, the Bundesnetzagentur considers competition in both the wholesale and the retail market to be sufficiently effective. Nevertheless, the Bundesnetzagentur is linking the extension of the usage rights to arrangements for promoting competition.

The mobile network operators are subject to a negotiation requirement obliging them to enter into negotiations with service providers and mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) on sharing wireless capacity. These negotiations should be non discriminatory and technology-neutral. The Bundesnetzagentur has produced a standard for the parties concerned in the form of detailed provisions as guidelines for effective negotiations.

The Bundesnetzagentur’s decision accommodates the fact that the interim extension of the current spectrum usage rights rules out the possibility for 1&1 Mobilfunk GmbH to directly acquire its own spectrum in the interim period. It takes into account the fact that 1&1 Mobilfunk GmbH and Vodafone GmbH have concluded a national roaming agreement. At the same time, a requirement has been included to safeguard national roaming for 1&1 Mobilfunk GmbH. The Bundesnetzagentur has also laid down a negotiation requirement with respect to the cooperative, shared use of spectrum below 1 GHz by 1&1 Mobilfunk GmbH. In future, the established network operators are required to enter into negotiations with 1&1 to a certain extent on the shared use of the important spectrum below 1 GHz in areas where the new operator rolls out its network. Other requirements include an obligation requiring Telefónica Germany GmbH & Co. OHG to lease spectrum at 2600 MHz to 1&1 Mobilfunk GmbH for the duration of the extension period, a negotiation requirement to promote cooperation among the mobile network operators and reporting obligations relating to negotiations on access to wholesale mobile services.

Competitive proceedings at a later date

The spectrum at 800 MHz, 1800 MHz and 2600 MHz is to be made available for mobile communications at a later point in time together with spectrum at 700 MHz, 900 MHz, 1500 MHz and 1800 MHz for which the usage rights will be expiring in 2033.

Coverage obligations in these proceedings are to be based to a greater extent on the quality that users can actually experience. This would include, for example, setting the minimum usable data rates that consumers in populated and unpopulated areas should be able to expect with a certain degree of probability. Requirements for coverage inside buildings and in vehicles would also be defined. Innovative instruments such as a negative auction are to be used with a view to improving coverage, in particular in rural areas.

Background

Spectrum usage rights in the bands at 800 MHz, 1800 MHz and 2600 MHz will be expiring at the end of 2025. The spectrum is currently being used by the three established mobile network operators to provide high-performance broadband services to consumers nationwide.

In September 2023 the Bundesnetzagentur published its framework for an interim decision, in which it considered extending the spectrum usage rights for an interim period and providing the spectrum together with other spectrum becoming available later in larger competitive proceedings. The Bundesnetzagentur published a draft decision for consultation in May 2024. The President’s Chamber also held a public hearing in January 2025 and gave interested parties another opportunity to submit their comments following the hearing. The proven practice of stakeholder consultation in small steps naturally involved a certain amount of time and other resources but fulfilled its function of providing insight, resulting in a balanced decision being taken in the interests of all stakeholders.

The decision (in German) has been published at: www.bundesnetzagentur.de/mobilesbreitband.