The Changing Telecoms Regulatory Environment in Germany CSIS . . . Ladies and Gentlemen, The full liberalization of the German telecommunications market on January 1st of last year has turned this market into one of the most liberalized and open markets in Europe and worldwide. This fact is globally acknowledged and illustrated over and over again, for example, through open licensing procedures without any foreign ownership restrictions. Furthermore, interconnection, call by call, number portability, equal access, and access to the local loop have all been available since January 1, 1998.
Newcomers can freely enter any segment of the market.
Let me take this opportunity to emphasize that a broad political consensus has been reached among all market players and politicians in Germany regarding the necessity of an open and competitive market. Thus, it is attracting a wide range of both national and foreign carriers, including numerous US companies. To date, there are more than 400 licensees and more than 1000 non-licensed services providers active in the market. Though competition has been developing quite significantly in the local market as well, the focus has been clearly on the regional and long-distance market. In fact, after a little more than one year of liberalization, competitors have managed to gain a significant share of the market for regional, long distance, and international services - a clear indication that competition is functioning.