Germany's Bundesnetzagentur has proposed guidelines on when fixed internet customers should be compensated for not receiving the promised broadband speeds. This is part of the EU regulation on net neutrality, which sets tighter requirements for broadband providers to disclose the minimum, maximum and normally available speeds to customers.
The German regulator started a consultation on defining the legal concepts to be used in the event a customer wants to file a complaint over slow speeds, including how the speeds are disclosed and measured. The consultation is open for comment until 10 May, and a public hearing on the topic will also be held.
The Bunesnetzagentur plans to make available software for end-users to measure their (wired) connection and proposes at least 20 measurements on two separate days would be needed to build a case against an ISP. A complaint for failure to deliver the advertised speed could be justified if 90 percent of the contracted maximum speed is not delivered at least once during the measurements, the normally available speed is not reached in 90 percent of the measurements or the contractually agreed minimum speed is not reached.
Recent research by the German agency found that many customers do not receive the maximum speeds mentioned in their contracts, which is most often the advertised speed in Germany. Only half of all fixed broadband users reached at least 60 percent of the advertised maximum speed, but this rises to over 90 percent at some providers.
