German telco 1&1 launches 5G FWA offering

1&1 noted that the first 5G antennas were put into operation in Frankfurt and Karlsruhe

German operator 1&1 has launched 5G services with fixed wireless access (FWA) , the company said in a press release.

The first antennas for the provision of 5G FWA were put into operation in Frankfurt and Karlsruhe. The network will be gradually expanded and 1&1 5G home broadband will be available in other regions in the next few weeks, the telco said.

The new offering, dubbed  “5G at home” is a replacement for conventional DSL, fiber optic or cable internet connection, and is now available in the first regions.

1&1 said it will initially offer three different packages with tariffs ranging from 20-40 euros.  All tariffs offer up to 500 Mbit/s in download and up to 40 Mbit/s in upload.

In an interview with German newspaper Die Welt, Ralph Dommermuth, CEO of 1&1 parent company United Internet, had said that the telco’s mobile network will initially provide 5G fixed wireless access services. He said that 5G mobile services will be available for smartphone users around mid-2023.

As part of the commitments included in the license that the telco had obtained in 2019 for the provision of mobile services, 1&1 is obliged to deploy at least 1,000 base stations this year. The 1&1 network must reach at least 25% of German households by the end of 2025 and at least 50% by end-2030, as part of those commitments.

Dommermuth had also said that the new network will be profitable within a few years.

In August 2022, 1&1 said it completed the first live test in its new 5G network. In the tests, 1&1 said that it achieved speeds of over 1 Gbps and stable data transfers of around 8 terabytes per customer within 24 hours.

Since the acquisition of its 5G license, the German telco has been selecting tech partners for the construction of its network. 1&1 had selected Japanese company Rakuten Group to design, build and operate a fully virtualized mobile network based O-RAN technology. The telco has also signed a long-term tower rental agreement with Vantage Towers AG.

In August 2021, 1&1 and Rakuten Group announced a long-term partnership to build the former’s mobile network in Germany. Through this deal, Rakuten became the general contractor for the 1&1 mobile network.

Last month, 1&1 Towers, a subsidiary of 1&1 AG, ​​and Eubanet signed an agreement to acquire up to 7,500 new 5G antenna sites.