The Federal Council launches a turbo internet offensive for peripheral areas

The Federal Council wants to support the expansion of high-speed internet throughout Switzerland with up to 750 million francs. He has instructed the Ministry of Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications (Uvek) to develop a corresponding consultation template.

To ensure that the Swiss population has nationwide access to high-speed internet, the Federal Council is proposing a financing program, the government announced on Friday. Network expansion should be supported beyond the centers in peripheral regions. This should prevent a digital divide between city and countryside.

The Federal Council wants to finance the expansion mainly with resources from the two future mobile phone frequency allocations, he said. It is also planned that industry and the affected cantons will participate.

Specifically, the program aims to motivate private companies to invest in sparsely populated areas where expanding modern telecommunications networks would not be worthwhile. The goal is to finance the gap between expenses and expected income over its lifetime.

Only if there is demand and no supply

Aid would only be granted if the market itself does not yet have a supply. According to the Federal Council, private investments should not be inhibited or suppressed by the federal government. The expansion will only be financed if there is demand for it.

If a municipality or region does not consider the development necessary, no funding will flow, as the Federal Council has announced. That is why the 750 million francs is a maximum amount.

The fiber optic network in particular is being expanded to the apartments. In very sparsely populated areas, the emphasis is on expanding wireless technologies. The Federal Council assumes that this mix can significantly reduce costs. Expanding the lines for the fiber optic network across Switzerland would cost around 1.4 billion francs, it was said.

Limited to seven years

According to the Federal Council, the financing program is expected to be limited to the next seven years. To ensure that the entire population and the economy can benefit as much as possible from digitalization, the Federal Council is aiming for the most extensive possible coverage with one gigabit per second throughout Switzerland.

According to the Federal Council, this corresponds to more than twelve times the internet speed of the current basic service in Switzerland. To achieve this, the network infrastructure must be expanded enormously. (sda)