Right to Internet: Federal Network Agency intervenes for the first time

Germany has had a right to the Internet for some time now. The Federal Network Agency has now had to enforce this right on behalf of a consumer for the first time.

Federal Network Agency demands stable Internet

A right to internet has been in force in Germanysince December 2021. This means that every German household must be provided with an adequate internet connection. In the relevant case, the Federal Network Agency called on the provider responsible to provide a download rate of at least 10 Mbit/s and an upload rate of at least 1.7 Mbit/s. Furthermore, the latency of the connection should not exceed 150 ms. Last but not least, the provider must also consider monetary aspects. For example, the monthly costs must not exceed 30 euros. Our colleagues at heise online contacted the Federal Network Agency to obtain more information on the agency’s obligation, but have not yet received a reply with the relevant details.

Citizen complained about disproportionately high costs

This case concerns a person living in Lower Saxony who was provided with an Internet connection. However, this was only at a disproportionately high price. As a result, the person concerned contacted the authority, which quickly addressed the problem. The Federal Network Agency noticed another problem. The supply contract is not only associated with high costs for the consumer. On top of that, the consumer suffered from an undersupply.

This not only means that the Internet performance is insufficient. In the view of the authorities, there is also an undersupply if there are too few providers operating locally and therefore no healthy competition with attractive prices. The case from Lower Saxony is apparently just one of many. The Federal Network Agency states that there are currently almost 130 complaints relating to the right to the Internet. However, an undersupply such as in the case described is said to be much more widespread. Experts estimate that around 400,000 households are affected.

Right to Internet as a prestige project

For Klaus Müller, President of the Federal Network Agency, this case appears to be an important issue. In a statement, he reiterates that everyone has “the right to an adequate supply”. Now it depends on how the provider behaves. Either they comply with the order or they take legal action against it. The authority also called on all providers operating in the area to adapt their services to the minimum requirements. Otherwise, there would be no choice for local consumers.