Ralph Dommermuth, the chief executive of 1&1, has firmly rejected speculation that he plans to sell the company’s fourth mobile network. Speaking to “Welt am Sonntag”, he said the rumors are unfounded and that there has been no discussion with Telefónica regarding a sale. Dommermuth is clear: “We are not planning a sale. My team and I have been working hard for many years on a challenging path. We are not handing over the keys halfway”.
Under Dommermuth’s leadership, 1&1 is building a nationwide mobile network that will compete alongside Deutsche Telekom, Vodafone and Telefónica O2. While a few reports suggested that the costly infrastructure project might be divested, Dommermuth is instead pursuing expansion and cooperation. He has expressed openness to joint efforts such as sharing rural cell‑tower sites, a model already common in other European countries.
By the end of 2025, 1&1 claims it will cover 27 % of German households, surpassing the 25 % coverage target set by the Federal Network Agency (Bundesnetzagentur). The company projects its coverage to rise to 35 % by the end of 2026.
Dommermuth is currently embroiled in a legal dispute with the Bundesnetzagentur. In late 2025, the agency extended low‑band frequency allocations only to the three established operators-Telekom, Vodafone and Telefónica-excluding 1&1. The CEO contends that this extension was unlawful and stresses the importance of those frequencies for ensuring indoor coverage.
Despite the challenges, Dommermuth sees the entry of a fourth network operator as a positive development. He believes it has intensified competition and led to substantially lower tariffs for consumers. For the current fiscal year, 1&1 is forecasting an operational profit growth of roughly €100 million.