The Federal Ministry of food, agriculture and consumer protection has announced that by 2010 a widespread availability to ensure broadband. Federal Minister Ilse Aigner stressed the expansion as main objective of the broadband strategy.

The availability of broadband is not yet sufficiently guaranteed in particular in rural areas with thin settlement. That should change by 2010, while providing for the second goal of the broadband strategy to achieve supply 75% of households by 2014 with high-performance VDSL connections (at least 50 megabits per second). The full spread of VDSL ports is planned for 2018.

With the new broadband strategy is the Federal Government on collision course with the European Union. It is in a policy paper that there is the Handelsblatt, in particular two obstacles impede the expansion of the infrastructure from the perspective of investors. This includes the high risk associated with investment in infrastructure, lack of predictability in addition. The Federal Government occurs according to paper for measures to reduce investment costs, as well as for investment and growth-oriented regulations. The regulatory proposals of the European Union designed not sufficient therefore. So should a “be avoided excessive burdens on companies and be more emphasis on incentive-oriented as well as investment and at the same time competitively neutral regulatory instruments”.

The expansion of VDSL network Telekom plans for cooperation with other providers, to distribute the risk of multi-billion dollar investment. While the Federal Government open to this measure, sees the Commission critical cooperation and will continue to be on a strict regulatory course.

According to information of the industry association BITKOM, who welcomes the view of the Federal Government as expected, investments of up to 50 billion euros needed for the nationwide expansion of total broadband network in the coming years. Thus, up to 250,000 jobs can be created. According to BITKOM President Prof. August-Wilhelm Scheer, the expansion must be initiated as quickly as possible. “The establishment and expansion of [telecommunications] infrastructure is a very costly and long-term project;” “the financial crisis the financing conditions have worsened”, so Scheer. Therefore guarantees of the Federal Government, the Länder and of the State Development Bank KfW to be according to the plans of the Government also open each company for network expansion.