10 Mbit/s for Internet access is enough! This is what the Federal Network Agency writes in its draft for the “Telecommunications Minimum Requirements Ordinance”. And 150 milliseconds should be enough for the latency.
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Federal Network Agency: Internet access must be at least 10 Mbit/s
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The first proposals became the draft of a legal ordinance: The Federal Network Agency has published its draft for the “Telekommunikationsminimum Requirements Ordinance” (TKMV-E). In its own words, the Federal Network Agency is thus starting the participation of federal states and associations in the development of the ordinance.
These are the minimum requirements
For Internet users in Germany, the most important aspect is in paragraph 2. This is what you can read there:
“Internet access service requirements
The requirements for the Internet access service, including the connection required for this, are specified for the
1. Bandwidth
a) in the download: at least 10 megabits per second;
b) in the upload: at least 1.3 megabits per second;
2. Latency (the halved runtime of the signal for the outward and return leg between the network termination point and the reference measurement point from the broadband measurement desktop app of the Federal Network Agency): maximum 150 milliseconds”.
The Federal Network Agency considers 10 Mbit sufficient for an Internet connection. This should bring tears to the eyes of many Internet users, but Internet access providers should be satisfied with this proposal. Online gamers, on the other hand, should only shake their heads in bewilderment at 150 milliseconds as the upper limit for the latency. With a latency of 150 milliseconds, you can forget about online gaming and certainly also smooth video conferences.
The preliminary work
However, these minimum requirements, which are not very beneficial for effective Internet use, especially in times of home office and video streaming, do not come as a complete surprise. The Federal Network Agency had already made its proposals for the draft of the Telecommunications Minimum Requirements Ordinance before Christmas 2021 and even then the authority named 10 Mbit/s as the lowest level: Right to fast Internet: 10 Mbit/s is enough.
The authority also mentioned the upload rate of 1.3 megabits per second and the 150 milliseconds as the upper limit for latency. At the time, the Federal Network Agency justified these proposed values as follows: “According to the report published today, Internet access that meets these requirements enables the use of all Internet services essential for the universal service.”
In this context, the Federal Network Agency expressly speaks of “minimum requirements for Internet access that enables all relevant online services”. The Federal Network Agency defines “all essential internet services, home teleworking and video streaming” as “relevant online services”.
Incidentally, in Paragraph 4, the Federal Network Agency even proposes a further, exceptional softening of the limits of 1.3 Mbit for the upload and 150 milliseconds for the latency. In such cases: “If in particular the amount of the expected costs of connection and telecommunications service and geographical features justify this.”
This regulation is scheduled to come into force on June 1, 2022. The Federal Council still has to agree to this.
What does this mean for internet users?
If your Internet speed, as measured by the Federal Agency, is below these minimum requirements, then you can contact the Federal Network Agency to arrange for your problem to be resolved.
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