Our core business consists of operating and expanding our networks. Our networks provide the foundation for digital participation. Since 2021, 100 percent of the electricity for our networks throughout the Group has been obtained from renewable resources. Also, by providing innovative, network-based, and digital solutions, we support our customers in reducing their own CO2 emissions and in contributing to climate protection.
We want to make our entire product range more and more sustainable. Furthermore, we take a holistic perspective on this issue, That is why we also factor in the aspect of a circular economy when developing customer offerings and devices – a product-life-cycle approach that extends to production, sustainable packaging, product use, product refurbishing, and product recycling. This requires thoroughgoing measures along all stages of the value chain. Consequently, we begin with procurement and strive to ensure that our suppliers comply with our ecological, social, and ethical sustainability requirements.
For us, the social aspect is equally important as the environmental aspects of our products and services. For that reason we strive to provide digital participation for everyone. We believe this requires a triad of Access – technical access to fast networks as well as barrier- and discrimination-free design, Affordability – rate plans and devices that factor in people’s different financial possibilities, and Ability – the ability and motivation to use digital media competently.
Our labels We have developed our #GreenMagenta and #GoodMagenta labels as tools for informing our customers about sustainability benefits. The #GreenMagenta label highlights products, services, projects, measures, and initiatives that are especially noteworthy in the areas of climate action and responsible use of resources. #GoodMagenta is applied to projects, actions, and initiatives that make a positive contribution to overcoming social and societal challenges in the digital world. Awarding of the two labels is subject to strict rules of our own definition. In each case, the product or effort, etc., has to show proven sustainability benefits. For awards of the #GreenMagenta label, we carry out extensive impact assessments. In cases in which societal or ecological impacts emerge that are clearly adverse, the #GreenMagenta and #GoodMagenta labels may not be awarded, regardless of whatever benefits the product or effort provides. In 2023, the year under review, TÜV Rheinland validated the award process for the sustainability label, including impact measurement, and awarded a certificate.
In addition, we permit products to carry recognized third-party environmental labels when this is appropriate. For example, several of our router and mesh devices received the TÜV Rheinland “Green Product” label (TÜV Rheinland is a leading international provider of technical services, including certification). We use the strict requirements of the independent labels to help us see how we can further improve our products.
In 2021, working in cooperation with other mobile network operators, we developed a sustainability ranking system for mobile phones – the Eco Rating. It enables customers to see at a glance which phones score well with regard to durability, reparability and recyclability, climate compatibility, and resources conservation. For more information, click here.
Packaging We have also been making our product packaging more and more sustainable. Since mid-2022, and on a European-wide basis, all of our own new products are being sold in sustainable packaging for which we have developed suitable sustainability criteria. Packaging for smartphones we source from our suppliers must also meet these criteria. We did not become aware of any violations of the packaging guideline by suppliers in the year under review. We verify compliance with the criteria by means of regular factory audits. When shipping technical equipment in Germany, we reduce package sizes with the help of special packaging machines. Increasingly, we are relying, for example, on PaperFoam, a bio-based and biodegradable alternative to conventional packaging materials, as a means of protecting our products within the packaging.
All new Deutsche Telekom-branded products, such as the T Phone, are shipped in plastic-free packaging. Most of the paper used is already recycled, or comes from sustainable forestry (FSC®-certified).
Responsible use of resources Our efforts to use resources responsibly begin right with the earliest stages of production. In our Speedport Smart 4 router, for example, we limit the use of harmful substances (such as in electronic components) beyond the degree required by law. Furthermore, a total of 95 percent of the housing of the Speedport Smart 4 consists of recycled plastic.
We introduced a MagentaTV Box in Hungary and North Macedonia in 2023 with a housing made of bio-based polycarbonate. Bio-based polycarbonate is a more environmentally friendly plastic that is manufactured solely from renewable raw materials. The box has already acquired the #GreenMagenta label. In 2022, we began making our SIM cards out of recycled plastic as another example. That change alone is saving some 63 metric tons of CO2 per year. The SIM cards carry the #GreenMagenta label. At the same time, we are aiming to do away entirely with plastic SIM cards and use only eSIMs. Via various measures, including customer advising, we are gradually increasing use of eSIMs. This is saving additional resources.
At the end of products’ life cycles, we help to ensure that they are reused or properly recycled. In fact, we have been collecting and buying back used mobile devices in various countries for this purpose since 2003. Since then, in Germany alone, we have helped to conserve resources by recycling, or providing for reuse, more than 3.6 million used devices. In November 2022, we reorganized our smartphone-collection system in our shops. Now, when customers return an old smartphone that has little residual value, and we cannot make them a purchase offer, they still receive a small consideration for their trouble provided the device can still be switched on and used. This provides an incentive for phone returns. If a smartphone can be given a second life, anyone interested can use our “Handyankauf” (phone buyback) service. These devices are then professionally refurbished and remarketed. The buyback portfolio currently has over 1 700 used models in stock. Via the “ReUse MyMobile” portal, we sell products that are fully refurbished and completely free of any technical defects. Each such product comes with a fresh 24-month warranty. For more information take a look at the Germany segment and the Environment section.
To promote sustainability, we are also committed to ensuring that routers and media receivers are not simply disposed of after being replaced. With our “Rent instead of Buying” service, we conserve resources, reduce the volume of electronic waste, and thus avoid CO2 emissions. Last year, we provided almost one million refurbished devices to our customers in Germany using the service.
Affordable 5G access and promoting digital participation: T Phone and T Tablet Affordable access to 5G technologies is a key issue at Deutsche Telekom within the framework of access and affordability as aspects of digital participation. As of 2022, we are offering our new T Phone and T Phone Pro 5G smartphones in a total of nine European countries and in the USA, with a view to enabling the largest possible numbers of people to profit from our 5G-network build-out. The phones also went on sale in Germany in January 2023. The T Tablet has been available in Germany and eight other European countries plus the USA since the year under review. With these relatively affordable products, we aim to provide more people with access to the digital world and, in particular, also drive forward digitalization in education with the T Tablet.
Digital participation for seniors As part of our efforts to ensure that everyone can take part in digital society, regardless of their age, we offer special equipment and products for seniors. The resources available for facilitating seniors’ use of digital technologies include big keyboards, uncluttered displays, with large fonts and icons, and emergency-call buttons.
Subsidized rates In Germany and at several national companies, we offer various subsidized rates, to enable customers on low incomes and people with disabilities to make calls at reasonable prices.
Subsidized rate plans Telekom Deutschland offers special rate plans to promote digital participation among different groups in society. What’s more, German Red Cross employees and firefighters can get special rates for Telekom rate plans thanks to corresponding framework agreements.
Digitalization in schools For more than 20 years now, we have been offering free broadband lines up to 16 Mbit/s to all general and vocational schools in Germany as part of the Telekom@School initiative. In 2023, more than 17 000 schools were making use of our offer. In the reporting year, over 9 000 additional schools took advantage of our subsidized Telekom@School prices to upgrade to bandwidths of up to 1 000 Mbit/s. In the year under review we funded the Telekom@School initiative with around 10 million euros.
Since 2020, school authorities may opt for a flat rate for education, which provides pupils with an unlimited data allowance for educational content, for a low monthly charge. In addition, school authorities can provide tablets or laptops to disadvantaged students, also with the help of funds from the Federal Government’s Digital Pact for Schools campaign. This gives children and young people the opportunity, irrespective of their family background, to learn how to use digital media. We consolidate our commitment to schools in our Group-wide Digital Education and School program. In the year under review, there were more than 14 000 active SIM cards in the Education mobile rate plan, which is earmarked exclusively for state-approved school authorities and educational establishments. The services included in the rate plans are envisaged for own use by the customer and by the authorized users (e.g., school students) on a mobile device. The funding for the Education mobile rate plan totaled around 11 million euros in the year under review.
Together with Microsoft, we have been supporting schools in Germany with an extensive digital education package (only available in German) since 2021. The package includes laptops or tablet PCs and special educational licenses for Microsoft 365 software. A team of Deutsche Telekom experts – specially certified by Microsoft – provides the service and helps set up the devices. Schools can test the package free of charge and without obligation.
As part of tenders for equipping schools, we make sure that our software and hardware suppliers are committed to compliance with sustainability aspects and can present appropriate certifications.
With our Magenta Classroom product, we accompany schools and school authorities on their way toward digital education. Our IT service supports schools from needs assessment for technical infrastructure, installation and operations management, and even training courses and support – on site and remote. Working together with selected schools, we developed standards that should ensure a positive everyday classroom experience for everyone involved – whether on a smart board or tablet PC.
The mental health of children and young people must not be underestimated when it comes to increasing digital participation in the classroom – especially when young people are increasingly facing mental health issues. The “FeeLee” app attempts to combat this trend by putting students’ mental health front and center. By using the app, young people should be able to understand their own feelings and reinforce their mental resilience in a fun way. They are asked several times a day about their emotional state – with emojis available to help them answer. “FeeLee” looks at habits and can provide tips on how to change or adapt these. The free, ad-free app from Deutsche Telekom is aimed specifically at young people, healthcare professionals, and educational establishments.
In 2022, we published our first Education Report which outlined the challenges and opportunities associated with digitalization in German schools. We also demonstrated what contribution Deutsche Telekom and its partners were making in this area. A revised version of the report is due to be published in early 2024. More information on the topic of digital participation through media skills is available here.
Video conferencing solutions for the home office We offer our business customers secure solutions that enable their employees to work from home efficiently. Our home office configurator helps small and medium-sized businesses, for example, to develop customized solutions for staff working from home. Likewise, our Digital Schutzpaket Business (digital business protection package) keeps sensitive customer data safe.
In addition, we offer videoconferencing solutions of various established providers, including some solutions with added, proprietary functions of our own that support energy-efficient work from home offices.
Measuring progress
We use various key performance indicators to measure our progress with sustainable products and services:
We use the ESG KPI “Sustainable Revenue Share” to determine the proportion of revenue generated with products and services that are classified as more sustainable, based on a risk-benefit analysis.
Continued analysis of our products’ sustainability benefits
KPI
To date, there is no industry-wide established system that provides sustainability information about ICT products and services. Since 2014 at Deutsche Telekom, we have been using an in-house analysis method to assess the sustainability of our products. This includes, for example, examining the safety of the products, or how well they can be recycled.
We inform our customers about how our products are contributing to sustainability. The results of our analyses also allow us to position ourselves as a responsible company with respect to the competition. In the year under review, our analysis included a review of selected products in light of EU taxonomy criteria.
Correlation with SDGs In the year under review, we reviewed – with support from internal experts – the sustainability benefits of a number of our products in light of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The degree of detail depended on the revenue generated with the product under review. If revenues were high, we considered the impact on all SDGs; where revenues were limited, we only took the impact on the most relevant SDG into account.
Results of the analysis In the year under review (2023), we studied 39 product groups in detail, analyzing both their contribution to sustainability and their business potential (as of the end of 2023).
Sustainable products are a key factor in competition for us. We use the ESG KPI “Sustainable Revenue Share” to determine the proportion of sales (excluding T-Mobile US) generated with products that make a contribution to sustainability. Revenues for individual product clusters are partially determined using a percentage allocation based on assumptions. In 2023, this share amounted to almost 43 percent (prior year: 42 percent).
We have recorded this indicator since 2014 using our own methodology, which we adapted in 2022. As previously, a product can only be assigned to the sustainable product portfolio provided it is highly likely that the product does not entail any of the seven risks defined in our methodology. The risk analysis covers the following issues: pollution involved in the manufacturing of ICT products, avoidable non-recyclable electronic waste, unethical working conditions, the use of conflict minerals during production, social exclusion, radiation and its impacts on health, and information security. Additionally, a product must offer at least one of five sustainability benefits. Reduced energy consumption, a reduction in CO2 emissions, efforts to achieve a circular economy, a reduction in time required, and enabling social participation are taken into consideration for this. Cost savings are still considered as additional information. However, a cost benefit does not constitute a sustainability benefit in and of itself. Revenues from the rental of devices in the fixed network were included for the first time this year, making up around 1 percentage point of the total value. It is difficult to differentiate between data and voice revenues when taking mobile broadband revenues into account, which is why this is based on assumptions. Owing to the fact that the EU Taxonomy does not cover the major part of our business model at present, we are also reporting this KPI in parallel for the reporting year.
Deutsche Telekom pursues the approach of human-centered technology. Technology must be beneficial to people and should not be seen as an end in itself. The aim of responsible technology development is therefore not only to optimize processes and increase economic efficiency. It is also to sustainably improve people’s living conditions, to better address their needs, to extend their freedom to act, and to protect their autonomy, all on the basis of ethical principles. Technology progress such as the Internet of Things (IoT) and artificial intelligence (AI) offers numerous opportunities in this respect and also with regard to the environmental challenges. We see a human-centered approach and attitude when designing and using technology as a key prerequisite for the future success of our business.
Internet of Things The IoT combines physical objects with the virtual world, with smart devices and machines connected to one another and to the internet. They use sensors to collect information on their immediate surroundings, to analyze and link that information, and to provide the data in a network. The data provides in-depth insights into possible inefficiencies in processes. IoT technology can help cut costs, increase profit – and also reduce the consumption of resources such as water, energy, and raw materials and so prevent CO2 and waste.
Types and application of IoT At Deutsche Telekom we are utilizing future-oriented and widely available technologies to make cities viable for the future and to develop solutions for social challenges. For this reason we offer our customers various network technologies: NB-IoT, LTE-M, and 4G/5G. Depending on the IoT project and use case, customers can choose the right technology and, in turn, also optimize energy consumption (see below for details of network technologies and usage examples).
NB-IoT and LTE-M are available in all towns and cities in Germany. Deutsche Telekom now offers NB-IoT in 32 countries. LTE-M, which was rolled out in Germany in 2020, is now available in 24 countries. The 5G wireless standard was available through the end of 2023 in over 95.9 percent of the population in Germany; in Europe the same figure was 67.2 percent. Find out more about our IoT network here.
The following subsection presents a few smart innovations and usage examples of the four wireless standards. The associated business models make an environmental and/or social contribution.
NarrowBand IoT (NB-IoT):
NB-IoT is an energy-saving wireless standard that is best suited for small data volumes sent at long intervals. NB-IoT devices have a large operating range and long battery service lives. Consequently, this technology provides the basis for many innovative uses that are both cost- and energy-efficient. Particularly useful areas of application for NB-IoT include smart parking, smart waste management, smart air quality monitoring, smart metering, as well as transport and logistics solutions. We use NB-IoT to support, among other things, the networking of irrigation systems.
LTE-M:
The LTE-M standard offers sufficient bandwidth for medium volumes of data, low-cost hardware, and sufficient battery service life for long use without access to a power supply. This makes it ideal, for instance, for e-health solutions where vital signs are sent to the cloud, or for monitoring cold chains in logistics.
4G/5G:
4G technology is suitable for IoT applications with high data requirements such as VR (virtual reality) glasses or video surveillance. If fast response times are also needed, for instance with self-driving vehicles or for the use of video drones, 5G technology provides the better solution.
IoT supports various applications, such as smart metering that measures energy data using electronic meters that can be read remotely. Heat suppliers Danpower and enercity contracting are using automated reading and processing of meter data to optimize their heat generation and, in turn, to cut CO2. The companies are using a solution from Deutsche Telekom to provide secure remote meter reading. The IoT solution not only meets the statutory requirements of the European Efficiency Directive. It also ensures regular consumption monitoring and optimization of energy consumption.
Deutsche Telekom together with the company PSsystec has developed the “IoT Energymonitor” for more sustainable energy management. The energy measurement system can efficiently determine the consumption figures for electricity, gas, heat, and water of buildings thanks to wireless technologies. Data is provided securely using LTE-M and NB-IoT in the Telekom Cloud of Things platform by being transferred via a gateway over the mobile communications network and is always available. Constantly measuring and supplying data allows the energy consumption in buildings to be adapted rapidly, improving energy efficiency in the process.
To combat pollution of the seas, the Dutch company RanMarine Technology has developed an autonomously floating drone for cleaning water. The drone swims purposefully around polluted waterways swallowing up waste. It uses Deutsche Telekom’s Precise Positioning system for pinpoint navigation. It enhances the accuracy of conventional GPS systems by using a global network of base stations that measures local interference of the signals from GPS satellites and sends this data to the cloud. From there, corrected position data is sent to the floating drone. This means the drone does not need any breaks or detours and can find its way reliably to the charging and unloading station. Thanks to Deutsche Telekom’s Precise Positioning solution the drone moves along the defined course more efficiently. It requires fewer charging cycles and can collect more waste in the water in the same amount of time.
Heavy rainfall events are on the increase due to climate change. Together with software company Spekter, Deutsche Telekom offers an innovative heavy rain early warning system for towns and cities. IoT sensors measure precipitation and water levels and give an early warning when critical values are exceeded. The Deutsche Telekom wireless standard NB-IoT is used to network precipitation and water level gauges.
Here you can find other examples of IoT applications.
Artificial intelligence Artificial intelligence (AI) offers huge potential to allow more people to participate in the digital world, to promote education and healthcare, and to make our everyday lives fundamentally easier. The development of new AI application scenarios, however, opens up new ethical challenges. The use of AI can, for instance, undermine the diversity of opinion, exacerbate inequalities, or spread prejudice. We are one of the first companies worldwide to have developed ethical AI guidelines as guardrails for the use of AI at Deutsche Telekom. Find out more here.
AI-based solutions are also conceivable for modern-day environmental problems, such as for combating the climate crisis, maintaining biodiversity, water security, or resilience against natural disasters. AI can help detect forest fires or floods early on and to initiate remedial measures in good time. It can also help develop and optimize production processes, for instance with saving important resources. Yet the use of AI also poses major challenges in an environmental context. As technologies become increasingly complex, energy consumption rises for training and using AI models. Likewise, as user numbers rise, so does energy demand. This raises issues of sustainable resource utilization – such as in relation to cooling water in data centers.
Our aim is to design AI to be as sustainable as possible right from the development stage and during usage. Since 2021, Deutsche Telekom has been sourcing all its energy as green electricity. At the same time, we aim to use AI specifically to enable and drive forward sustainable solutions. For example, we are currently testing how many people are located near to certain mobile antennas at which times of the day. Based on the results, a demand-based algorithm can be used to automatically switch certain frequency bands on and off – and so help save energy. To achieve our AI-related goals, we are collaborating across units at Deutsche Telekom.
We are discussing the opportunities of technological developments and the associated challenges, looking at relevant solutions, beyond the confines of our Group. For instance, at this year’s Digital X or also as part of the “Grüne künstliche Intelligenz (Green artificial intelligence)” episode of the sustainability magazine show “Heute retten wir die Welt! Ein bisschen (Today we’re saving the world! A little bit; only available in German).” launched at MagentaTV in the year under review.
We want to make it easier for everyone to have access to the knowledge and information society. With that in mind, we offer barrier-free, non-discriminatory access to our digital and non-digital products and services. To this end, we also offer people with disabilities access to specially tailored services and are also committed in our national companies to providing barrier-free access to our services. Further information is available in the respective segments.
Service for people with hearing difficulties We set up a hotline (Deaf Hotline) in Germany for the deaf and hearing-impaired in 2003. In the year under review, this service was requested 4 500 times in Germany. Customers and consultants can see each other using a video-based live chat application and can communicate with each other in sign language. Also, we offer a chat service in which specially trained staff advise deaf and hearing-impaired persons in simplified language.
For deaf customers and members of the German deaf association, Deutscher Gehörlosen-Bund e.V., we operate a special online distribution site. There, we offer a discounted mobile-communications and fixed-line portfolio that is tailored to the exact needs of hearing-impaired persons. Via the website, customers can either book desired rates directly or contact our Deaf Hotline.
Since 2018, hearing-impaired people in Germany have had access to a 24-hour emergency-call service with sign language interpreters for emergency situations. The service is jointly financed by the mandatory social security contribution paid by Deutsche Telekom to Germany’s Bundesnetzagentur (Federal Network Agency).
Barrier-free program on the Special Olympics World Games 2023 In summer 2023, Deutsche Telekom supported the Special Olympics World Games Berlin as a premium partner. We provided telecommunication services and broadcast the pre-event and live reporting from Berlin via our streaming service MagentaTV as part of the German Media Alliance. Deutsche Telekom was the only company from the eleven partners in the Media Alliance to provide the content on the summer games entirely barrier-free – on MagentaTV and on the eponymous YouTube channel with subtitles, audio description, and in German sign language.
Support through simple or simplified language According to studies, 12 percent of people in Germany are not able to grasp complicated texts. For that reason, parts of our www.telekom.com website, of the Teachtoday Academy and individual thematic pages under “Specials” are offered in this CR report in simple language.
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“Schubkraft” (“Thrust”) program: funding options for sustainable digitalization
Through our “Schubkraft” program we are supporting businesses and municipalities to leverage the advantages of digitalization while also helping achieve climate targets in Germany.
Our program offers:
Access to funding options: We provide an overview of around 3 000 government funding programs. By doing so, we would like to break down barriers and, with our expertise, help businesses and municipalities access financial resources for sustainable and innovative projects. More information is available here (only available in German).
Digital support: Our free app “Meine Förderung” (“My Funding”), (available in the app stores for iOS and Google Play) informs businesses and interested parties about suitable funding options. Since its rollout, the app has already been downloaded over 6 000 times.
Personal advice: Our team of experts is on hand to provide individual advice. As part of direct conversations, we can address specific requirements and questions and suggest tailor-made solutions.
Through “Schubkraft” we aim to ensure that digitalization in Germany is not only structured from an economic, but also from a socially and environmentally responsible viewpoint. With this approach we would like to make a positive contribution for society, while promoting the competitiveness and innovativeness of our customers.
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Germany segment: digitalization as facilitator for a sustainable future
Telekom Nachhaltigkeitsmanager Digital solutions for sustainability management and reporting make it easier to fulfill upcoming reporting obligations. Since 2022, the “Telekom Nachhaltigkeitsmanager (Telekom Sustainability Manager)” (only available in German) has been offering the Germany segment a digital toolkit, which is being constantly extended to fulfill more and more new requirements. The central platform consolidates sustainability data, calculates emissions across all three scopes, and creates legally compliant sustainability reports. Sustainability targets can be defined by recording the enterprise’s environmental impacts, and measures managed to reduce emissions.
“Digital X” – Technology at your fingertips In September 2023, we again became an official cooperation partner for “Digital X” in Cologne – Europe’s leading digitalization initiative. On an area of two million square meters, it offered inspiration, new perspectives, and technology up close for visitors over two days. This year’s motto was “Be digital. Stay human.” “Sustainability & Responsibility” was one of the four megatrends alongside “Connected Business”, “Security” and the “Future of Work”. To focus the event on sustainability, we have targeted the areas of climate protection, resource efficiency, and the circular economy and, among other things, paid special attention to easy accessibility of the event venues by public transport. 50 000 visitors attended the event along with 250 speakers.
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Systems Solutions segment: products and customer enablement
T-Systems has set itself the goal of becoming the leading provider for sustainable IT services and also making a major contribution in this role to reducing CO2 emissions of Deutsche Telekom. To this end, the segment set up its own program in 2020, which not only looks at its own processes, but also examines the products on offer and the enablement of business customers. T‑Systems enables its customers and partners to increase their sustainability performance by transparently structuring their own value chain, and offering leading digital sustainability solutions and consulting.
Enablement of customers T‑Systems continually determines the environmental impact of its products and services and makes this transparent to customers. To do so, the company uses various technologies and tools developed in-house such as the “susTain Calculator”. This tool allows prospective new customers to calculate what CO2 emissions they can save by switching to the IT infrastructure and the services of T‑Systems. To determine the carbon footprint of solutions, T‑Systems uses an impact measurement approach in accordance with the Group-wide Impact Measurement Blueprint, that also includes social and economic factors and looks at the entire value chain. An important factor in impact measurement consists of the positive carbon-footprint impacts our customers realize through the use of T‑Systems’ ICT solutions. To constantly improve the methodology, T‑Systems collaborated in the year under review with Telekom Deutschland and Group Corporate Responsibility to develop a tool for calculating the carbon footprint of products.
More sustainable products and solutions T‑Systems’ goal is to continually increase the number of more sustainable products and digital solutions in its portfolio. The segment offers industry-specific and cross-industry solutions.
Together with the technology consulting provider Detecon, T‑Systems supports business customers with developing digital sustainability strategies based on its “DigiTainability” approach. DigiTainability entails striking a balance between the following elements: The use of digital technologies to increase resource efficiency, the reduction of negative environmental, economic, and social impacts, while also designing digital technologies to be more sustainable. The consulting lineup includes strategic consulting for transformation, ESG transparency and reporting, sustainable supply chain management, green IT initiatives, and data intelligence for sustainability.
With its solutions, T‑Systems helps its business customers to collect, monitor, document, and improve all sustainability-related data for their organization and beyond. The T‑Systems’ products include the Syrah SDG Dashboard or the Supply Chain Transparency Suite, a solution designed to fulfill obligations under the German Supply Chain Due Diligence Act (Lieferkettensorgfaltspflichtengesetz – LkSG). With Ambika, T‑Systems has also rolled out a cloud-based infrastructure management system for electric car charging stations.
T‑Systems also helps its customers implement digital solutions that are ideal for their specific sustainability requirements. T‑Systems provides solutions for the mobility and logistics sectors that facilitate the wide-ranging digitalization of airports, thereby helping make workflows more efficient. For the public sector, T‑Systems offers a solution in the shape of PEGA that promotes the digitalization of government administrative processes and, among other things, saves paper and reduces travel. Examples of the impact that our solutions have can be found here.
Besides the focus on products and services that can make customers more sustainable, T‑Systems is increasingly working on taking account of sustainability criteria right from the actual development process. To minimize the carbon footprint of new and existing solutions, T‑Systems has developed nine principles for sustainable solution design and published these internally in the year under review. The Environmental Sustainability Design Principles should provide a guide for all T‑Systems’ employees that helps them design applications and solutions more efficiently from a carbon footprint and energy consumption viewpoint. T‑Systems also provides its employees with supporting web-based training courses to make the issue easier to understand. More information on environmental product design at Deutsche Telekom can be found here.
Cooperative partnership Together with our customers we are working on accelerating the digital transformation and investing in new business models that focus on the decarbonization of society. With Co-Creation Advisory, T‑Systems set up an initiative in 2023 to promote cross-industry collaboration in the field of sustainability. Over 100 T‑Systems’ customers took part in the accompanying three-part event series, the Co-Creation Advisory Board for Sustainability, and were actively involved in developing specific solutions. Together with them, we have developed nine new solutions for the area of sustainability in the year under review. The initiative will continue in 2024 under the name X-Creation and a close partnership with the United Nations Global Innovation Hub. Interested parties from business, the research sector, organizations, and the public administration will again gather in the Co-Creation and work together on ideas.
T‑Systems remains in close contact with customers and suppliers to consistently reduce CO2 emissions. Memoranda of understanding were signed with key suppliers Lenovo, Cisco, and Fortinet to work jointly to address the topics of energy efficiency and climate neutrality. T‑Systems and the technology company Lenovo, which supplies components for the cloud solution Future Cloud Infrastructure (FCI), are working on reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the supply chain, for instance.
Additionally, T‑Systems is an industry partner to legislators and the research sector. One example of this is our partnership with the Fraunhofer Institute, with whom we are developing innovative green technologies for cloud computing. Another example, this time at international level, is our partnership with the University of Granada, which sees us establishing a Chair of Innovations in Digital Sustainability to drive research activity in this area.
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Through our interactive benchmarking tool, important facts and figures of our national companies can be analysed and compared.
At Deutsche Telekom, everything starts with
the network. Having access to state-of-the-art
technologies is a precondition for economic
performance and participation in a
knowledge and information society.
That is why we are continuing to rapidly expand our infrastructure and improve transmission speeds with new, secure technology. We invested more than EUR 16 billion Group-wide in 2023, primarily in setting up and operating networks. This is in addition to the investments that we make in acquiring mobile spectrum.
At Deutsche Telekom we put people front and center, especially our customers and our employees. Worldwide, Deutsche Telekom employees ensure that our networks run smoothly and our customers receive the best service. In this way, we made it into the top 10 of the world’s most valuable brands in 2023. When it comes to telecommunications companies, we occupy the number 1 spot worldwide, remaining Europe’s most valuable corporate brand.
When rating agencies give high marks to our social and ecological commitment, the T-Share is included in the financial market’s sustainability indexes. In 2023, the T-Share was once again listed in indices such as the renowned CSA-based DJSI World and DJSI Europe.
Further detailed examples of the progress we made in 2023 can be found in the subchapters – from the Group’s perspective and from that of our segments.
Highlight numbers
Highlight numbers
Progress of selected KPIs in 2023
20222023
Investments in building and operating networks Group-wide21bn.16bn.
Customer satisfaction TRI*M75.0 points76.2 points
Sustainable revenue share42%43%
Proportion of T-Shares held by investors with ESG criteria31.3%32%
Procurement volume verified as non-critical64.1%66.2%
