Dieter Elixmann, Thomas Schnöring
Internationalization of the German Telecommunications Service Market and Strategic Behaviour of DBP Telekom
Nr. 112 / Juli 1993
Summary
Despite the traditional openness of the German economy, foreign direct investment in the sector providing telecommunications services is a rather new characteristic. Likewise, the incumbent in the German market, DBP Telekom, only gradually is entering the international scene. The paper scrutinizes on the one hand the activities of foreign telecommunications companies in Germany, mainly resting on opportunities for market entry brought about by regulation. On the other hand the focus is on the international strategy of DBP Telekom which can be fully understood only in the context of current business and legal constraints.
Foreign companies have already penetrated German telecommunications markets substantially. The cellular mobile market has attracted the most interest, however, market entry is taking place also on a considerable scale in the satellite service market and the VAS-market.
It is DBP Telekom´s stated objective to be one of the leading players in the European and world-wide telecommunications service market but the actual steps taken have been rathers cautious so far. There is a strategic partnership with France Télécom and a special emphasis on activities in Central and Eastern Europe. So far, DBP Telekom remains relatively inward bound, tied up with its transformation process from an administration to a market oriented company as well as with the challenges of East Germany. Future steps of DBP Telekom will be dependent on the outcome of the privatization debate in Germany and the associated regulatory conditions.