Reg­u­la­to­ry ap­proach to mi­gra­tion from cop­per to fi­bre net­works

Year of issue 2026
Date of issue 2026.01.19

The Bundesnetzagentur has today published a regulatory approach to the transition from copper to fibre networks.

“The migration to fibre networks means a forward-looking internet upgrade for Germany. Copper networks can only be switched off if fibre is available almost nationwide and competition on the new networks is assured. The process leading towards the eventual copper switch-off will therefore start when certain conditions have been met, regardless of which network operator has deployed fibre,” said Klaus Müller, President of the Bundesnetzagentur. “This regulatory approach outlines our vision of a successful migration from copper to fibre networks. Consumers should be informed in full and in good time about all the steps to be taken in the transition to a modern fibre network. They should also continue to have a choice between different providers and benefit from fair prices in the fibre world."

The Bundesnetzagentur’s aim

The Bundesnetzagentur wants to help to make sure the path is clear for a swift, orderly and competitive migration to fibre throughout the country. This requires a realignment of the legal framework to give the Bundesnetzagentur additional instruments to work with. This is incumbent upon the legislators. For its part the Bundesnetzagentur is putting forward specific proposals.

To ensure fair competition in the fibre rollout, every company should have an equal opportunity to recoup its invested capital. A dependable, rule-based process for copper to fibre migration is essential for this. The profitability of investment in fibre is directly dependent on how long copper networks are operated in parallel as a competing infrastructure. As soon as certain objective conditions, including fibre coverage and service-based competition, have been met in a region, the copper networks should be closed down. It should not matter which network operator has deployed fibre in a particular region.

Specifically, the proposal includes the following elements:

The Bundesnetzagentur recommends the legal formalisation of a rule-based procedure to switch off the copper networks. It should be possible to start disconnecting the copper network in an area if a minimum level of fibre coverage has been reached and if suitable wholesale offers are available.

1. At least 80% of households and undertakings should be provided with fibre to the home before the migration process commences. In principle, there should be nationwide fibre coverage at the time of the actual disconnection.
2. A suitable wholesale offer in every region means there is “open access”, that is to say, there is access to the fibre network for third party providers. In the Bundesnetzagentur’s view, this access should follow common principles in technical, procedural and pricing respects for all fibre networks.

The marketing of copper-based offers should end at least 24 months before the actual disconnection in a given region; at least 12 months prior to that there should be notification that the copper network is being disconnected.  

The Bundesnetzagentur’s view is that there should be a higher-level migration plan for the entire federal republic. As a minimum this plan should include the intended start date of the first region-specific migration process, the targeted end of the last migration process and the important milestones. 

Next steps and background

Following the Bundesnetzagentur’s discussion paper of 28 April 2025, this regulatory approach is the next step in the debate on this key topic for the telecommunications sector. It thus implements the mandate of the BMDS key elements paper of October 2025. Unlike the discussion paper of April 2025, the Bundesnetzagentur’s regulatory approach departs from the existing legal framework. The approach is intended to add to the debate regarding the forthcoming changes to European and national telecommunications law. At the same time, this debate will mean the approach has to develop further. An overall approach to the regulated copper to fibre migration is a very complex task. It must be worked out step by step and does not end with the publication of the approach.

Stakeholders have the opportunity to respond to the proposal until 16 March. The regulatory approach and further information are available at: https://www.bundesnetzagentur.de/DE/Fachthemen/Telekommunikation/Kupfer-Glas/start.html (in German).