Online Expert Briefing: The German Netzbremse Complaint & the Threats to the Open Internet in Europe

​On behalf of MEP Tiemo Wölken, you are invited to participate in an online expert briefing on the German Netzbremse complaint (see background below) and its implications for the future of the Open Internet in Europe, including the European Commission’s forthcoming Digital Networks Act (DNA).

​Event Details

• ​Date: Wednesday, 5 November 2025 - 17.00 to 18.20 CET

• ​Format: Online (Zoom)

• ​Expert speakers:

  • ​Professor Barbara van Schewick (Stanford University Law School)

  • ​Thomas Lohninger (epicenter.works)

  • ​Nikola Schiefke (VZBV, German Federal Consumer Protection Organisation)

  • ​Jürgen Bering (GFF, Gesellschaft für Freiheitsrechte)

• ​Moderator: Caroline De Cock, information labs

​Register here by 4 November 12.00 CET.

​Background Netzbremse complaint

​Earlier this year, the Netzbremse coalition lodged a formal complaint with the German Federal Network Agency (BNetzA) against Deutsche Telekom (DT) for net neutrality violations. The complaint centres on DT’s practice of creating artificial bottlenecks when connecting to their network. This effectively requires online service providers to pay for unimpeded access to DT’s internet users who have already paid for their connectivity to the whole internet. A case with significant implications for Open Internet protections across the EU and a warning example of what could become the new normal with the upcoming Digital Networks Act. 

​Bios

​Barbara Van Schewick is a professor of law at Stanford Law School and a leading expert on net neutrality. Her book Internet Architecture and Innovation (MIT Press 2010, Paperback 2012) is considered to be the seminal work on the science, economics, and policy of network neutrality.

​Thomas Lohninger is Executive Director at epicenter.works, Non-Residential Fellow at CIS Stanford & former Vice-President of European Digital Rights. Thomas was one of the driving forces behind the www.savetheinternet.eu campaign and his work focuses strongly on the topics of net neutrality, data protection and mass surveillance.

​Nikola Schiefke is Referentin at the Verbraucherzentrale Bundesverband (VZBV), the German consumer association.

​Jürgen Bering is Head of the Division “Freedom in the Digital Age” at the non-profit Gesellschaft für Freiheitsrechte (GFF).