Digital Minister Volker Wissing wants to increasingly promote innovative network technologies. The focus is on open network architectures contributing to Germany’s digital sovereignty and transformation. The InnoNT funding programme financially supports networking between political, business and research actors with various event formats.<\/strong><\/p>\n The first call for funding of the funding guideline “Innovative Network Technologies in Mobile Communications” has started. Project proposals for research, development, and testing of innovative network technologies in public and private mobile networks can be submitted to the Federal Ministry of Digital Affairs and Transport (BMDV) until 14 October 2022. This applies in particular to future network technologies, as well as to generations already in use, such as 2G, 4G, and 5G. Funding is available for collaborative and individual projects that involve the interoperability of open hardware and software interfaces.<\/p>\n In the words of Dr Volker Wissing, Federal Minister of Digital Affairs and Transport: “With our funding, we are supporting real-world research into innovative network technologies and open network architectures in mobile communications. In this way, we are laying the foundations so that new generations of mobile communications can be introduced more quickly in Germany in the future. In addition, we are supporting the development of an independent, national, and European manufacturing industry and strengthening the competitiveness of Germany as an industrial and technology location.”<\/p>\n The aim of the BMDV’s funding is to strengthen the competitiveness and innovative power of the national and European innovation ecosystem in the field of telecommunications. More manufacturers and users of hardware and software components are to be involved and networked with each other. In particular, innovative SMEs are to be facilitated in entering the economic-technical ecosystem. In this way, the BMDV contributes, among other things, to increasing the diversity of offerings and accelerating network expansion due to fierce competition. The funding guideline is embedded in the federal government’s gigabit strategy and will be funded with up to \u20ac300 million until 2024.<\/p>\n Project proposals can be submitted for feasibility studies with a maximum duration of eight months as well as project outlines for R&D projects with the aim of developing new products, processes or services of hardware and software components of radio network technologies. In addition, activities that support industrial standardisation, e.g. of framework and reference architectures, can be funded. All projects must be completed by 31 December 2024 at the latest.<\/p>\nFederal government’s gigabit strategy<\/h2>\n