Judging by the amount of posts in the various Facebook groups and the comments’ section on this very blog, newcomers never cease to be baffled about how poor access to reliable internet is in this country. Whether it’s at home or on mobile, it’s hard for some to move to the first European economic power and experience internet like it’s 2009.
This happened to me too naturally. It’s more expensive, slower than back home and don’t get me started on how it takes to even open a line. This made me curious: how did this happen? I mean surely, reliable and fast internet is key to economic success. How has Germany let this develop?
Come with me on a journey of poor technological choices, lobbying and weak political will.
Looking at the numbers: how bad it really is
Germany is 25th worldwide in average internet speed (2017), was 22nd in 2015 – just 15,3 Mbp/s. Half as fast as South Korea and below 13 other EU countries, as well as Switzerland. For the average highest internet speed, we’re only at 45th, behind 17 EU countries and Switzerland! We’re even further behind in fiber optics – only 4 countries rank lower than us. The mobile 4G network is also one of the worst in Europe, both in average speed and availability we’re at the bottom of the rankings, while we pay some of the highest prices in Europe for data.
What is the current technology behind this situation?
There are several different types of broadband connection (Breitbandanschluss) – copper, co-axial cable, fiber optics, and various hybrids of these main options.
- Copper is the slowest, reaching about 100Mbits/s download and 40Mbits/s upload at best.
- Cable internet can reach 1000 Mbit/s download and 50 Mbit/s upload in hybrid format.
- But that’s nothing in comparison with pure fiber optics, which can easily reach 2.5 GIGABITS per second download and upload speed!
With GPON technology we could someday see 52.5 Gbps, some 2300 times the current average internet speed in Germany. In experiments with multi-core fiber optics, researchers managed 255 TERRABYTES per second But in Germany, most network connections use copper (24.7 million), some use cable (7 million), while only about 2% (700.000) use fiber optics! Why is that?
Only 2% of network connections in Germany is through fiber optics. 2%!
Looking at history: how did it get this bad?
Already in the 1980’s, Helmut Schmidt’s government created a 30-year plan to expand the fiber optics network across the entire nation, recognizing the potential of this technology for the future. But during Helmut Kohl’s administration, these plans were put on ice and investments were made in the existing cable network. By the end of the 2000’s, Germans were already way behind other nations like South Korea and had no practical alternatives to DSL internet.
Then came the Europe 2020 strategy with three goals – broadband connection and 30Mbit/s speeds for everyone by 2013, and 50% of households with 100+ Mbit/s internet contracts by 2020. Each member state was supposed to create plans for making these goals happen. But Germany has failed to meet the first two on time, while the third hasn’t even discussed at a political level. Instead of investing in fiber optics, the government aimed for an average speed by combining the Telekom’s copper cabling with vectoring technology.
Actually, most of the network infrastructure is now based on fiber optics, except for the last part connecting the distributer boxes to homes. Telekom has full control over these distributer boxes due to the vectoring technology and was not motivated to innovate or improve things. Upgrading to fiber optics up to the last mile is a lengthy and expensive process, especially in the countryside.
But the current German government hasn’t discouraged the vectoring/copper technology, even providing additional funding until it was blocked by the EU Commission in an effort to increase competition. Meanwhile, the government kept making more promises it couldn’t keep and only in 2016 did it finally make real steps towards promoting “internet for everyone”. In 2017, 77% of households were only getting 50Mbit/s internet speed, instead of the promised 100!
It seems like the current situation arose from missing investments, failed government action, and a push from the Telekom to keep things in their favor.
It seems like the current situation arose from missing investments, failed government action, and a push from the Telekom to keep things in their favor. Other countries made efforts much sooner and better to connect households and cell towers to a fiber optics infrastructure, recognizing the importance of fast internet everywhere.
The impact on mobile data
This has also affected mobile connectivity, since some cell towers haven’t been hooked up to high speed internet. This impacts on the mobile price plans, the amount of data available per plan and also the maximum possible speed reached on a phone.
A study from 2018 from the federal network agency established that only 1.6 percent of German smartphone users can reach the promised internet speeds on their devices.
How much mobile data you can get for 30€ across Europe. Source:
http://research.rewheel.fi/
How does the future look like?
It’s easy to see that data is playing a much larger part in our lives with each passing year and connection speed will continue to be important. That’s why fiber optics are a safe investment for the future. Someone currently living in the countryside, with only a basic internet connection, will need much longer to surf the internet, waiting hours for large files to download. This holds them back!
Startups are formed in areas where the internet is fast, and companies won’t invest outside of the cities without the necessary digital infrastructure. We as individuals are also increasingly dependent on a fast connection. Studies are showing that our use of Google is causing us to forget details, knowing we can just quickly look everything up – externalizing our memories to the internet. Those with a slow connection won’t have the same access to information and lose valuable time with their processes. Time is short, and even seconds of delay can add up quickly.
Disclaimer: this post is largely inspired from the excellent video made by German Youtuber Simplicissmus. I recommmend the full video for more details on the situation. This post is just a short intro, many sources are there if you want to investigate further.
You can also watch this Jamie Oliver status quo update by the excellent German moderator Jan Böhmerman.
Deutsche Well also covered it well.
If you are wondering, you can read here how to pick the best German internet provider for your needs.
Germany is stuck in a fax age, and it shows no interest to move forward. And that applies everywhere where IT and telecommunications are involved.
P.S. Where else in the world in 2023 you are asked by your family doctor to consent on sharing your medical data with other medical institutions via fax?
All the comments here match my experiences in Germany. Poor digital services, especially shocking if you’ve from Asia, where in most developed and developing regions, digital/telecom services are pretty much world class and far cheaper. Even in the EU, as mentioned in the article, German internet and data prices are ridiculously expensive while being laughably slow and limited.
Banking services are also terrible and outdated in Germany, with a lot of unnecessary and archaic barriers. Even if you manage to jump over those barriers, you still get second rate services and terrible pricing.
Digital infrastructure in Germany is at least a decade, or more, behind most of the world. Customer service is decent, IF & ONLY IF, you can speak German well. If not, sorry, no service for you! Even though they’ll all take your money and lock you into lengthy contracts, no service if no German. Yay!!
This 18th century mindset of “you’re in xyz country, so you must deal with xyz language” is so ignorant and based in arrogance and stupidity. The countries that have moved past this medieval mindset are the ones that are leading in ease of business, consumer satisfaction, quality of life and many other metrics. Yet, most Germans, German businesses (and German politics) seem to learn nothing from it.
I am from germany (54yo web developer), and agree to you 100%.
Services are often down, but comstomers evn got no excuse – the service (online banking, government services) are just not running – that’s all. Very arrogant and stupid also.
In 2 years I will move to asia, because I got ashamed and annoyed from this behaviour.
German is indeed an developing country concerning internet…
We had Telecom. They forced us to upgrade our contract as the old one relied on old technology. They screwed up and we were left without internet for several weeks, even though we were told we would not be without service and only agreed because of this. Initially they said it would be months even though it was completely their fault.Their service level was and is appalling although when working it’s very reliable for us, but Unity Media is no better and less reliable. Political protection is partially to blame for this and it’s a complete disservice to the populous.
Interestingly in the UK you can get a faster ‘fiber’ connection without the last bit being fiber. This relies on a particular technology for the last copper bit. I was told this was banned in Germany as only Telecom would be able to use this and other supplies complained as it was unfair competition.
Ridiculous if true. The sensible thing would be to open the market and force Telecom to allow more competition, but no.
I think the UK has done this and it works pretty well. They have to lease lines to competitors at a fair price, but I think the infrastructure is supported by public money.
In the US they have a different model, where by the companies alone pay for the infrastructure and the result is pretty high cost to the consumer.
Thanks for your input Marty.
It’s amazing compared to India, there you get hardly 10 mbps and even that keeps disconnected even with the newest router and not copper cables
The internet speeds have drastically increased in the past few years in India, considering you’re not using state owned BSNL.
I’m replying this thru a 150Mbps connection sitting in a tier-3 city in India.
In case you didn’t know, DSL stands for “disgraceful shitty line”.
🙂
Sadly, whenever i see a top 10 list of internet speed and dont see Romania in the top 5 i know the list is crap. So yeah.
This guy knows what he sayes, Ro. 1 000 Mbs/s with 20/ Eu maybe les. Germany 100 Mb/s 46 Eu/Month. Like WHAT???????????????
https://www.glimp.co.nz/countries-with-the-fastest-fixed-broadband-in-2020
It is midnight here in Berlin . Pretty much checking up on why the Internet in this country is so shit ?! I’ve lived in 8 countries half of them were in Asia . Even though some were still newly developed countries they have a better mobile and home internet than GERMANY who is a so called DEVELOPPED COUNTRY ….. ughh I’ve unplugged my modem More than 5 x today …. hurray Germany
Thank you very much for bringing up the topic. You spoke my words: “Internet in Germany generally sucks”.
But apart from the government’s role, I also want to draw your attention to the German people themselves as one part of the culprit.
I am now in a rented apartment. When he built my apartment, my landlord did not feel to install a telephone line in this apartment. I talked to him. He absolutely didn’t want to apply for a telephone line now as well (it can cost between 400 to 800 euros to install a telephone line).
My rental contract with him is 1 year. For me it makes no sense to pay for it and install a telephone line by myself.
I called the 1&1. They could do nothing too when there is no telephone line to begin with.
My only solution was some kind of wireless internet service.
But believe it or not, no wireless internet signal can reach my home in this village that I live except the wireless coverage of one company which everyone in the village is a customer of and my landlord suggested me to use it as well:
It is the beloved Vodafone which is a company from the UK I suppose.
They are the only people who can install for me a fast wireless internet (fast means at most around 50 mbps) but let us to look how expensive it is:
First before doing anything, they require me to sign a 24 month contract with them! I mean seriously? I am just living for less than a year in this apartment but why I am forced to sign a 24 month contract?!
Worse are the conditions of the contract! for example even though it is wireless and may seem to you that I can easily take it with me anywhere I want, but it is only aimed to be used at one single place (that is my home) so I can’t carry the portable Wi-Fi modem, let’s say in my car and use it on the way and if I do, they can discount it via their towers (they can sense which tower I am connected at any given time). Only if I change my home address a few limited times, I can inform them so I am assigned to use it in my address. Also no need to say that I am not allowed to share my internet connection with anyone else (it is for usage by only one person which means everyone has to go directly to them and buy his or her own internet directly by singing a 24 month contract with them).
Last is the price of the service! It is not a flat rate unlimited service. I am allowed each month to only download a specific amount of data. Recently it has been increased to 125 GB of data in a month for 35 Euros and 250 GB for 45 Euros a month. It is again ridiculous: why to be restricted in the data usage while still paying 45 euros a month for 24 month? Which internet you know on this planet which is this much expensive?!
And finally worse is that it is only this region which supports Vodafone network!
There is a high possibility that in my next rented apartment, Vodafone signal will not reach it as it never ever worked in my two previous rented apartments based on my experience from the past when in 1 I had 1&1 internet and the other strong Constar signals but never Vodafone which was almost unreachable….
So that is it…
For this home… considering my landlord’s hesitation to install a telephone line and the unchanging 24 month minimum contract duration, I am writing using internet on my mobile phone now which is tremendously expensive! Based on the packet I have chosen it still costs several euros for using a single gigabyte for me…
This is one example… you can figure out how all of these, now forces me to use a kind of text version of internet … I don’t watch videos or anything on internet… I can use this internet only for necessary stuff and only in a text format to read stuff and send text emails…
I thought deeply about it and could not find any better solution to my internet problem… and this is the experience of one inhabitant in the advanced country of Germany! Who is to be blamed in my situation, I just don’t know but things happen like this probably to other people one way or the other in Germany!
Thanks for sharing your feelings. We will all make it better someday.
As an American stationed in Germany, this has confirmed all my suspicions. My service goes out for days at a time and Telekom has no solution.
I’ve been really frustrated with the speeds here in Germany. I come from the Netherlands, where 100mbit over cable is basically the standard and 300mbit is cheap as fuck. My 100mbit connection in Berlin is terrible. Latency is awful and I often can’t reach the 100mbit speeds advertised. Also, I often experience outages, mostly during late night internet usage.
It’s funny how the company I work at has a slower internet connection (100mbit) for 20 employees whereas my parents in the Netherlands have 300mbit and pay much less for it.
Then again, Germany is behind the times with everything. It feels like it’s at least 10 years, if not 20 years behind the Netherlands on so many things.
Paying contactless is only recently becoming a thing, but you still can’t pay with card in most shops and restaurants which is mind boggling.
What about invalid access? I recently dislocated my foot and couldn’t go to my normal doctor who has an office on the 2nd floor of an Altbau without an elevator. I had to find another doctor, but guess what? Most of them had the same issue. Going to the MRI office was a chore as well. They had 2 heavy doors which had no automatic opening, but did have the auto closing. I can tell you that it was almost impossible to get in there on crutches. I also can’t use the U-Bahn near my house because it doesn’t have an elevator or an escalator.
What about infrastructure then? Bike lanes are one of the worst I’ve seen here and really dangerous. Only recently have they actually started overhauling them on mehringdamm the way they should’ve always had them. They’ve borrowed their inspiration from the Netherlands. It’s not perfect, but much better from how it used to be and still is in basically 99% of the city.
And let’s not forget the needless bureaucracy that every governmental office goes through. You want an appointment at the Burgeramt? Nearly impossible and their system for booking online appointments is archaic compared to the Netherlands. In the Netherlands you have a digital ID, which you can use to get access to all your data online and make appointments. This is for education, health care,filing taxes and general government business.
And let’s not forget about the banks here. Needlessly expensive and outdated with absolutely zero customer service. I’m still using my Dutch bank here because not only is it cheaper, I can also use my card at literally any bank without worrying about fees. I can also withdraw any amount of cash with zero fees. I know my friend can only withdraw a minimum of €50 and can only do that a couple of times a month. I can withdraw €10 if I want unlimited (except by my balance of course).
Sorry to go on a rant here, but these are all small things which make a huge impact on the quality of life here and Germans have this stubborn view of it that they don’t want to change. I often hear: “if it’s better there why don’t you just go there?”. It’s a flawed way of thinking. The question that should be asked is “how can we match them or surpass them?”
It’s a good thing Berlin has many other redeeming qualities which make these things kind of bearable.
The situation is Germany is a failed country in telecommunication, internet and other online services. I am a business woman, and that was one of the reason I moved to other country. Many people from the near poor countries think everything is superb here, but the truth is, almost everything is in the middle age. They did not develop anything since 50s, and now they are in trouble to solve basic issues.