German fibre-optic network provider GVG Glasfaser is currently looking into taking over the deployment of FTTH networks in municipalities in federal state Baden-Württemberg affected by the withdrawal of Liberty Networks Germany with its helloFiber brand.
“We are already in contact with the Gigabit Region Stuttgart,” confirmed GVG Managing Director Michael Gotowy in Kiel. “Currently, we are examining the corresponding rollout areas in Baden-Württemberg, making profitability calculations and will subsequently hold talks with all relevant parties.”
Liberty Networks Germany confirmed in early January 2023 that it would end its fibre deployment in Germany with immediate effect and withdraw from the market. The decision was based on the “changed macroeconomic conditions,” helloFiber CEO Dr Christian Böing told Broadband TV News at the time, citing inflation, interest rate levels and access to external capital. Further reasons were the rising fibre rollout costs with a shortage of construction capacity and the increasing challenge of attracting communities with suitable characteristics, he added.
For GVG Managing Director Michael Gotowy and the entire GVG Group, one thing is certain: in the long run, only economically viable, long-term deployment models and companies that build on this will prevail in the fibre optic market. “We have been on the market since 2014 and have been consistently and constantly expanding pure fibre since then. In order to be able to roll out even more future-proof fibre in Germany, a long-term German investor has been behind GVG since the end of 2019.”
Behind the GVG Glasfaser group of companies, which currently has around 500 employees, is the independent German investor Palladio Partners, based in Frankfurt. Palladio manages investments of institutional investors such as pension funds, insurance companies, utilities and church investors. The built infrastructure is to remain in its own hands in the long term.
At the beginning of 2023, GVG concluded the 100,000th contract for FTTH supply. The group of companies is currently active in more than 210 municipalities in federal states Schleswig-Holstein and Lower Saxony – with its nordischnet brand – and in Hesse, Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg with its nationwide brand teranet. The plan is to gradually expand to the whole of Germany.
