Telefónica Deutschland launches large-scale fibre-optic cooperation with NGN FIBER NETWORK

On its way to the mobile communications network of the future, Telefónica Deutschland is cooperating with NGN FIBER NETWORK KG (NGN) from Lower Franconia in order to have parts of its mobile communications locations connected to high-speed fibre-optic lines. The goal of the network operator is to further improve the performance of its own LTE network, while laying the foundation for a nationwide 5G network that offers significantly better data rates, higher capacities and extremely low latency times. Following a cooperation agreement, which the two companies signed in April 2018 to connect at least 1,500 mobile communications sites, the work on the network expansion is now picking up speed. The cooperation was initiated with the official ground-breaking ceremony at a mobile radio station in Hofoldinger Forst near Munich. Cayetano Carbajo Martín, Member of the Board of Directors and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Telefónica Deutschland, and Marco Weigand, shareholder of NGN FIBER NETWORK KG, jointly accompanied the first steps of the current construction work for the fibre-optic connection of the station.

“We are pleased to have found the ideal partner in NGN to provide our mobile stations with high-performance fibre-optic connections,” says Cayetano Carbajo Martín, Member of the Board of Directors and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Telefónica Deutschland. "We are currently accelerating the expansion and modernisation of our mobile network in order to create an even more efficient O₂ network for our customers. In doing so, alongside the major grid integration project, we are initiating the fundamental transformation of our network, preparing it for virtualisation and future technologies such as 5G. Our network of the future will be an essential part of becoming the Mobile Customer & Digital Champion.” “We are proud to be able to draw upon our extensive knowledge in fibre-optics in order to support Telefónica Deutschland in the expansion and transformation of their mobile network,” says Marco Weigand, shareholder of NGN FIBER NETWORK KG. “We will further intensify our successful cooperation as part of the current roll-out of the 5G mobile backhaul. We offer Telefónica Deutschland our support as a full-service provider – from the planning and implementation to the technical connection of the fibre-optic cables right up to future maintenance measures. With our constantly growing fibre-optic network, we are one of Germany's largest fibre-optic suppliers, which offers individual new construction projects as well as the provision of telecommunication infrastructure for our customers.”

Connecting its mobile stations with fast fibre-optic connections is an important component for the transformation process of the O₂ network. In general, Telefónica Deutschland is currently focusing intensively on expansion, modernisation and quality improvements, paving the way towards the network of the future. The grounds for the future network are being laid by the current network integration of O₂ and E-Plus, which is currently on the finish lines throughout Germany. As part of the network integration work, several tens of thousands of mobile communications sites are being modernised and equipped with the latest future-proof technology. Hardly any site is being left untouched in order to ensure the modernisation and improvement of the network quality. At the same time, the company is driving the LTE expansion massively in order to improve broadband coverage across the country and to further increase the available network capacities in urban areas. This way, the new and completely modernised network serves as the optimal foundation for future standards such as 5G. Virtualisation also plays an increasingly important role for Telefónica Deutschland, allowing, for example, for the even faster implementation of network quality measures.

For the fibre-optic connection of its stations, Telefónica Deutschland cooperates with several partners – including telecoms service providers and other network operators. NGN is a strong national partner for the company to rely on. As part of the cooperation, NGN acts as general contractor, taking care of everything from planning, constructing to activating the fibre-optic connections to the base stations of Telefónica Deutschland. All maintenance and servicing activities for operating the fibre-optic connections are also provided entirely by NGN. The technical connection takes place between the respective base station and the next central node in the O₂ mobile network (mobile backhaul). The medium-sized company from Aubstadt (Bavaria) has a nationwide fibre-optic network of approximately 15,000 km, which is expanded further by around 600 to 800 kilometres every year. In addition, shareholder Marco Weigand’s company has broad knowledge in the expansion and provision of fibre-optic lines. The company builds ready-to-use NGA broadband networks, develops and connects industrial sites and business parks, data centres, mobile base stations, cities and districts, to name but a few.