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United Internet attacks competitors in the telecommunications market

Ralph Dommermuth is the boss of United Internetthe parent company of 1&1. Since the beginning of the year, Dommermuth has filled the position of CEO at 1&1 Drillisch AG. Since the telecommunications market in Germany is in a state of flux anyway, he could well take advantage of the opportunity to strengthen his company's position.

Completely new possibilities for Unity Media

Considering that the Group originally only leased the services of other providers under its own name, the current prospects are considerable. Among the opportunities offered to the company thanks to the latest developments is access to the Vodafone network. If United Internet decides to actively participate in the expansion, the Group could even become the owner of the fast fiber optic cables. There is also the possibility that United Internet itself could become a mobile phone provider.

1and1-lte

What hurdles must the company overcome?

Before an own 1&1 network can actually be implemented in Germany, there are still some challenges that need to be overcome.

First of all. the new 5G frequencybe awarded by the Federal Network Agency. The frequency is intended to ensure even faster mobile Internet in the future and must be auctioned off by the individual providers. The major competitors TelekomVodafone, and Telephone are already considered set. If 1&1 also wants to get hold of frequencies, there is still a serious problem: The construction of a 5G network is anything but cheap and also relatively costly to implement.

Is 5G convertible for 1&1?

The fact that the company has not yet become one of the major players in the German telecommunications market could now be his undoing. Customers who would purchase 5G via the provider 1&1 would have to accept a major disadvantage: 1&1, unlike its competitors, does not have a "normal" mobile network.

1and1-5gThe major competitors can easily offer their existing LTE network and thus also supply customers who are at least temporarily in rural areas. 1&1's customers, in turn, would only be able to enjoy the new convenience of fast mobile Internet in cities and large conurbations.

Roaming for everyone?

In order to address the problem of its own non-existent LTE network, 1&1 would have to rely on its competitors' networks. The large providers would therefore have to agree to enter into an agreement with the new, fourth competitor so that its customers could share foreign networks. This type of network sharing is called "roaming". Customers can switch between different networks in order to use the currently most stable network for themselves.

Dommermuth demands that the political community stands up for the interests of the company. He thus argues that competition in the German mobile phone market is more likely to be brought about by a fourth provider.

Vodafone is standing in the way

The head of Vodafone Germany Hannes Ametsreiter consistently rejects Dommermuth's proposal to share existing networks. This leaves only the two other competitors - Telekom and Telefonica. It is still unclear whether the two companies would agree to allow roaming over their networks.

However, in order to adequately implement the approach so that all parties involved would benefit from roaming, the government would first have to change the antitrust law.

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