Companies outside of the cities in Bavaria often lack a fast internet connection. In rural areas, only 16 percent of companies have a fiber optic connection, according to a study published on Tuesday by the Bavarian Business Association. This means that the Free State is well below the national average of around 26 percent. The situation is similar in the suburban regions.
In the cities, however, the situation is different: Here, Bavaria, with a rate of 41 percent of companies connected to the fiber optic network, is well above the national average (34 percent).
The study comes to similar results for connections in private households. While the supply of fast internet connections in Bavarian cities is slightly above average, there is some catching up to do outside of the city. The consulting firm of the employer-related economic research institute IW Cologne, IW Consult, evaluated federal data on wired broadband provision for the study.
With slower connections, the Free State’s broadband funding program has brought significant improvements in coverage across the area, the study authors conclude. In cities, almost every household has a connection with at least 100 Mbit/s. In rural areas the figure is 82 percent, significantly higher than in Germany.
The authors also draw a positive conclusion regarding mobile phone coverage. Almost every household has access to an LTE network. According to the study, around 98 percent of companies and households in the Free State are also covered by 5G. According to a company survey by vbw, almost all larger companies with more than 250 employees have contractually agreed bandwidths of at least 500 Mbit/s.
Two thirds of companies expect bandwidth requirements to increase by 2026. Technical applications such as remote maintenance, mobile applications and the processing of large amounts of data are cited as reasons. The market research institute GMS Dr. Jung surveyed 650 companies about this in October and November.