Companies and organizations that want to optimize their work with the help of the new 5G mobile communications standard can now build their own 5G networks on their premises. The fee regulation necessary for the use of the frequencies was published on Wednesday in the Federal Law Gazette. Companies and organizations should now be able to apply for the use of local 5G frequencies on Thursday.
The frequencies from 3.7 to 3.8 GHz used for the 5G campus networks were not auctioned in the 5G auction for mobile operators in June, but reserved in advance by the Federal Network Agency. The providers Deutsche Telekom, Vodafone, Telefónica and 1 & 1 Drillisch had paid a total of 6.55 billion euros. The frequencies for 5G networks on the factory site will be comparatively inexpensive to use.
"We are sure that many medium-sized companies will implement their own 5G campus networks based on local frequencies in order to be prepared for the digital future," said Stephan Albers, Managing Director of the Broadband Communication Association (Breko). The Breko states that the Federal Network Agency has set "moderate fees" for the local 5G frequencies.
Interested parties from different areas
In recent months, many industrial companies have expressed interest in building their own 5G networks, including car manufacturers such as Audi and Daimler, as well as service companies such as Deutsche Messe AG and Lufthansa. Universities like RWTH Aachen University also want to build 5G campus networks. At the Mobile World Congress, a tech show in Barcelona, the lighting and sensor group Osram had already shown the prototype of a campus network in the spring.
Among incumbents, the plans to allocate frequencies to companies had met with resistance. She worries that they might lose orders from key business customers through the process.