Consumer advocates warn: Germans pay too much for cell phones

Whether Telekom, Vodafone, o2 or one of the mobile phone providers without their own network - those who use mobile phone and mobile internet in Germany pay top prices compared to other European countries. This is unnecessary for consumer advocates - and the reason is completely clear.

In a European comparison, many products and services are more expensive in Germany than in other countries. This also applies to mobile communications and has nothing to do with roaming, which used to be so expensive. In Germany, the same service simply costs significantly more than anywhere else.

Mobile communications and internet on smartphones: Germans pay top prices

Klaus Müller, Chairman of the Federation of German Consumer Organizations (VZBV), says: "The bare figures show that we have some of the most expensive fees and prices for mobile communications and mobile Internet in Germany" (source: dpa via Spiegel). How big the differences are according to a recent study by the VZBV, we have summarized in a separate article.

According to Müller, there are no reasons why this should be the case, apart from too little competition. The consumer advocate sees a need for action here. In order to strengthen competition, one has to ensure shorter contract terms, for example . A corresponding change in the law was planned in the summer, but now only contains simpler options for termination, no generally shortened minimum term.

With the lessons of the pandemic in mind, you have to be aware of one thing: "There is a huge need in Germany to become even faster digitally - and then please also cheaper." It is therefore not just about lower prices, but also for more performance and better coverage. In the 5G area, Germany still has room for improvement.

If cheaper cell phones are hard to come by, it makes sense to save on cell phones. You can find inexpensive smartphones in the video :

Consumer protection: Customers want more flexibility

When it comes to regulation, politicians must stop orienting themselves towards providers and finally make consumers the benchmark. "They want more flexibility and affordable prices," says Müller with certainty. At the same time, people today are even more dependent on cheap and fast data connections, for private services as well as for working from home or on the go.

After all: compared to previous years, prices in Germany are also falling continuously. Compared to 2016, before the pandemic, consumers only paid around half per gigabyte of data volume.