DT And Telefonica Eye Closer 5G Collaboration Ahead of German Auction

Deutsche Telekom and Telefonica Deutschland are to collaborate more closely, ahead of Germany’s 5G spectrum auction, according to a company statement.

Deutsche Telekom has agreed to connect 5,000 of Telefonica’s base stations to its fibre network in Germany, in a move that will create cost saving synergies for both companies.

“This agreement is an important step toward ensuring the future viability of Germany’s mobile communications infrastructure,” said Dirk Wössner, managing director of Telekom Deutschland.

“Everyone will win from this cooperation, because Deutsche Telekom and Telefónica can both capture synergies. The resources that we save will be dedicated directly to our own network upgrades and the development of 5G. Deutsche Telekom is building and operating the largest fibre-optic network in Germany by far. We are very pleased that we will now be utilising our infrastructure together with Telefónica – because it will benefit Germany and millions of people.”

The partnership will form a solid base from which the two network operators can upgrade their 3G and 4G LTE base stations to 5G in the coming years.

“This partnership between Telefónica Deutschland and Deutsche Telekom represents an important milestone for network expansion in Germany. By using the available infrastructure, we can accelerate the expansion of our mobile network and get a significant portion of our mobile base stations in shape for the future 5G standard. As a result, our customers will benefit directly from a more powerful mobile network and a better user experience,” said Markus Haas, CEO of Telefónica Deutschland. – Total Telecom