Foreword

Broadband Internet is the cornerstone of the information society. It is responsible for myriad innovations, even as it simplifies our lives, improves the way we cooperate and contributes to our affluence. It is the motor force for social and economic development in Germany and around the world.

Deutschland Online has been produced to provide important insights on the latest trends and prospects involving broadband Internet. The focus of our survey is on the key current and future trends. The introductory chapter presents a concise overview of the main findings. The second chapter focuses on the German broadband Internet market. The third chapter is devoted to the topic of convergence, i.e. the convergence of Internet, communication and media content. The fourth chapter explores the expectations which customers have of the new broadband technologies, while the fifth chapter deals with the latest trends involving the mobile Internet. We are already witnessing the way broadband Internet contains the seeds of a whole new culture – the digital lifestyle, which is the subject of chapter 6. And the seventh chapter puts the spotlight on a new generation of users, the IP generation, focusing on their needs and requirements.

With an eye to the main international trends in the sphere of broadband Internet, Chapter 8 examines the global broadband market. And the final chapter closes with a look at the prospects and opportunities offered by this still-young, dynamic technology.

142 experts were queried within the scope of the survey, and 14,578 people participated in the consumer part of it. Deutschland Online is one of the most comprehensive hybrid surveys ever conducted in Germany on the topic of broadband Internet.

Our special thanks go to all citizens and corporations who contributed to the success of this survey.

Bernd W. Wirtz, Munich, Germany, January 2008