Resistance against 1&1: providers close the ranks
1&1 should actually have been offering its own 5G network since the end of 2022. The provider messed up the start, now the task is to keep the damage small. The best place to do this is with the competitors: 1&1 wants to be in the networks of Telekom, Vodafone and o2. But they’re closing.
1&1 wants to force the opening of the network: o2, Vodafone & Telekom are not participating
The only exception is o2, with whom 1&1 has already concluded a roaming agreement. When the 5G network from 1&1 goes live in September according to the current plan, customers will switch to o2’s 4G network, where 1&1 does not yet offer coverage. But that’s not all: 1&1 has submitted an application for national roaming to the Federal Network Agency (BNetzA).
does it go through all operators would have to let the competition into their networks. In one fell swoop, 1&1 would gain access to the already well-developed networks of Telekom, Vodafone and Telefónica/o2 in addition to its own 5G network, which has barely been built up – and not just to the 4G architecture. The advance does not go down well with the competition.
“That is outrageous and from our point of view totally untenable“, explained o2 boss Markus Haas (source: dpa via Southgerman newspaper). o2 wants to stick to the previous roaming contract with 1&1. The third-party use of the networks must be further regulated via contracts between the competitors. 1&1, on the other hand, wants to force access with the help of the BNEtzA.
1&1 is hoping for better chances from this step, while its own 5G network is not yet competitive. The company could “as the fourth network operator equal opportunity with the established mobile network operators,” explains a 1&1 spokeswoman.
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Haas, on the other hand, believes that 1&1 must pull itself together “and don’t always whine and ask the regulator for help”. The o2 boss is not alone in rejecting mandatory roaming. From Vodafone it is a bit more affable: “We have taken note of the application with great astonishment”, while a Telekom spokesman simply described the demand from 1&1 as “absurd” dismissed.
1&1 has to get on with it: network construction cannot stagnate forever
Torsten Gerpott, an expert in telecommunications at the University of Duisburg Essen, sees little chance for 1&1. “At some point they have to come to potte, they can’t just rely on national roaming forever.”
The opening could have many advantages for consumers. After all, the networks of other providers would automatically take over if your own had a dead spot in one place. However, it is unlikely that this will happen. The decision of the BNetzA is still pending. There are also still standing for the missed expansion targets fines in the millions in space, the 1&1 could be raised.
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