Business Case Analysis The expansion of fibre optics in Germany and neighbouring countries is currently experiencing a boom. Investors are looking for investment opportunities in future-proof and sustainable infrastructures. New providers are forming and established telecommunications companies are upgrading their networks to meet the demands of the future. WIK supports these players in many ways: We conduct market potential analyses to examine the attractiveness of expansion areas at the micro level. We analyse the regulatory environment and assess the implications of public funding

Auction theory Auction theory generates essential insights for the design of auctions in practice. Frequency auctions and negative auctions to supply white spots in network supply are the result of a detailed game-theoretical preliminary analysis. Frequency auctions have been used in Germany since 1996. WIK developed the auction design and accompanied the government authority for telecommunications and postal services (now the Federal Network Agency) in conducting the first auction and all subsequent frequency auctions (1999, E-GSM frequencies; 2000 UMTS auction; 2010 Digital Dividend I; 2015

Data Collection Up-to-date data is an essential input for a variety of business models in the internet and platform economy. Effective policy and business decisions in such a dynamic market environment should be based on empirical evidence and quantitative analysis. Collecting and collating data provides the basis for our evidence-based research and the recommendations for policy and business action that we derive from it. WIK independently collects primary and secondary data as part of its research programme and applies a diverse set of tools in this context. In addition to our in-house expertise

Impact Assessment – Cost-Benefit-Analysis The European institutions and increasingly other regulatory authorities are increasingly requiring the preparation of impact assessments before major new legislation or policies are adopted. Impact assessment involves developing intervention logic linking the identified problems to different possible solutions, and assessing which solution will best deliver effective results, while being cost efficient and coherent with other measures. Assessing impacts on different stakeholders as well as wider socio-economic and environmental impacts is also