Germany follows the UK on coverage collaboration

Deutsche Telekom will be joining forces with the German bits of Telefónica and Vodafone so they don’t duplicate each other’s efforts in remote locations.

The move seems identical to the initiative announced by UK MNOs a few weeks ago, which resulted in Ofcom removing coverage obligations from the next tranche of low-frequency spectrum to be made available. Presumably the German regulator has indicated it would be in their best interests for the German MNOs to follow suit, although in this case it’s more about satisfying existing coverage oblgations.

Right now, however, this is just a statement of intent rather than a hard pact. “The three telecommunications providers plan to coordinate the set-up and operation of up to 6,000 new cell sites and have signed a letter of intent to this effect,” says the announcement. “1&1 Drillisch AG has been invited to participate in this network expansion collaboration. A prerequisite for joining the collaboration is that the operator must be willing to take on an equal share of the expansion projects as the other parties.”

This seems a bit harsh on Drillisch as it’s currently an MNVO using the Telefónica and Vodafone networks and has far fewer subscribers than any of the MNOs. “The plan proposes that each company participating in the collaboration should set up an equal number of new sites which can then be used by the collaboration partners and fitted with their own antennas and the appropriate network technology as required,” added the announcement.

“The planned collaboration is a milestone for network expansion in Germany,” said Telekom Deutschland’s Managing Director Dirk Wössner. “Our common goal is to eliminate coverage gaps in the mobile network as soon as possible. Sharing infrastructure is nothing new for us. Sharing it at this scale, however, is a major step in the right direction. After all, high-speed internet and excellent voice quality on road, rail and water are vital for an industrial country like Germany that relies on mobile communications.”

“Mobile communications will be the most important technology in the coming decade. And we are pooling our resources to put Germany in an ideal position,” said Markus Haas, CEO of Telefónica Deutschland. “This collaboration is an outstanding example of intelligent cooperation towards taking the next logical step. We must join forces if we are to consolidate Germany’s position as a leading business location that is ready to take on future challenges. Together, we will take digital transformation in Germany to the next level.”

“Today, we are forging an alliance to combat dead spots and increase mobile communications coverage even in areas where it is not profitable,” said Vodafone Deutschland CEO Hannes Ametsreiter. “In future, hundreds of thousands will benefit from this – people in small rural communities, people on roads, people traveling by train. Together, we operators will construct and share a common infrastructure in dead spots – and of course continue to be rivals in a competitive infrastructure market in the rest of the country. This is good for the network, good for customers and good for Germany’s digital future.”

This looks like a good solution for the MNOs so long as they can agree on an equal share of the work. Drillisch announced it wanted to get into the MNO business buy winning some 5G spectrum in the most recent auction, leading to considerable sulking from the incumbents about the cost of it all. It looks like they’re going to make the newcomer pay to get into their little coverage club.