Broadband expansion

The aim is to provide all "white spots" with broadband access. The funded expansion is intended to ensure effective and technology-neutral broadband expansion to achieve a sustainable, future-proof and high-performance broadband network (next-generation access network - NGA). The WFP is a building block for the nationwide coverage of all households in Jena.

In the upstream market exploration procedure, the need to connect 312 households and 67 companies to the broadband network was determined. These addresses can only be connected at disproportionately high cost, which cannot be refinanced through the sale of telecommunications products. This "profitability gap" is closed in the WFP by a subsidy from development funds.
As part of the WFP, 64 km of civil engineering work will be carried out, 84 km of empty conduits will be laid and 147 km of broadband network will be built using fiber optic technology. Kommunalservice Jena is responsible for project management.

The part of the project that is visible to everyone is the civil engineering work. In the WPF, only underground cables are used. Trenches are dug or drilling technologies are used for this purpose. Empty conduits are then inserted into these, via which each address point can be supplied with a dedicated fiber. Distribution cabinets are built for active network components. Reserves are kept for later network expansion.
Once the civil engineering work is complete, the hardware components are installed and the fiber optic cables are pulled in. The fibers are connected together (spliced) in a complex process, which is one of the most time-consuming processes in network construction. Finally, quality control and documentation are carried out. It takes around 2 years before the network can go into operation.

The ground-breaking ceremony for the start of construction took place at the beginning of April 27, 2022 in the Leutra district.

Locations where civil engineering work will still be taking place in 2024, as of June 2024:

• Ammerbach
• Wöllnitz
• Göschwitz
• Closewitz
• North
• Münchenroda

Localities in which the civil engineering work has already been completed:

• Isserstedt
• Krippendorf
• Vierzehnheiligen
• Lützeroda
• Kunitz
• Winzerla/Cospoth
• Maua
• Leutra
• West/Forst
• Remderoda
• Wogau/Jenaprießnitz

The routes will be equipped with active technology once the civil engineering work has been completed.
Completion and commissioning of the network is planned for the end of 2024.

Thüringer Netkom has been marketing your broadband connections since spring 2021. For use, the connection must be routed to the respective property. The owner of the property must submit a declaration (GEE) for this.
It is also possible to connect a property to a site that has been prepared for connection at a later date. In this case, however, the civil engineering costs are not eligible for funding and must be borne by the property owner.
The installation of the connection is independent of the booking of a telecommunications product. Ask your preferred provider for a tariff that suits you.

You can find more information on the Thüringer Netkom project here.

The funding bodies PricewaterhouseCoopers GmbH (PWC) on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure and Thüringer Aufbaubank on behalf of the Thuringian Ministry of Economic Affairs, Science and Digital Society are supporting the EUR 7.4 million project with EUR 3.7 million in federal funding and EUR 3 million in state funding. The city of Jena is contributing its own share of 0.7 million euros.

The city of Jena is endeavoring to provide every household with an NGA broadband connection in the future by combining the various funding sources, network operators and technologies. The prerequisites for this are being created by various players. The mayor's office is the point of contact.

Economically attractive addresses are developed by the telecommunications companies in what is known as a self-economic expansion without outside capital.

Deutsche Telekom is the largest network operator in Jena. Fiber optics has been the standard technology for the local network for years. Since mid-2022, Deutsche Telekom has also been expanding its network on the so-called "last mile", i.e. to the home with fiber optic technology. This will enable customers to be offered more reliable services and higher bandwidths. The declared goal is to be able to supply around 14,000 households in Jena with fiber optic connections by 2026. Telekom markets its own products, but partners such as 1&1 can also use the network.

Stadtwerke Jena-Netze is also constantly expanding its fiber optic network. Stadtwerke Jena supplies the tenants of JenaWohnen and Carl-Zeiss-WG as well as Heimstätten and other housing associations. Stadtwerke also focuses on commercial enterprises and institutions. Stadtwerke is the network operator; telecommunications services are provided exclusively by third parties such as TeleColumbus or 1&1.

TV cable networks (HFC) are another building block in the nationwide supply of broadband Internet content. Households with a TV cable network connection are already considered to be covered. With a special cable modem, download rates are achieved that meet the definition of an NGA network (next-generation access network).

The telecommunications market is subject to the Telecommunications Act (Telekommunikationsgesetz-TKG). Market participants can develop freely. It is therefore possible that further telecommunications companies will set up their own broadband networks in Jena in the coming years. Kommunalservice Jena endeavors to coordinate such activities and to make use of existing capacities whenever possible.