Observed Signal · Jun 3, 2026 · Deprecation · Source: t3n · Impact: 2/5 · Sentiment: Neutral
German Carriers to End MMS Service June 30, 2026
German mobile operators will discontinue Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) on June 30, 2026. Vodafone had already switched off MMS on January 17, 2023; Telekom, O2 and 1&1 will shut their MMS services on the June 30 date. Operators and industry bodies point to plummeting usage, high costs, and replacement by internet-based messengers and newer standards. The GSMA finalised the RCS Universal Profile 4.0 in March 2026, positioning Rich Communication Services (RCS) as the successor for native carrier messaging (images, video, group chats) using subscribers' data plans. The article highlights steep long-term declines in SMS/MMS volumes and advises users to save any important legacy MMS content before the shutdown.
The shutdown ends a legacy carrier messaging service in a major market and signals migration to RCS; relevant to mobile messaging, telco infrastructure and app-based communication—but not industry‑shifting for core AdTech/MarTech.
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Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- Telekom, O2 and 1&1 will discontinue MMS service on 2026-06-30.
- Vodafone introduced MMS in Germany in April 2002 and switched it off for customers on 2023-01-17.
- GSMA finalised the Rich Communication Services Universal Profile 4.0 specification in March 2026.
- Vodafone cited internal data showing December 2012: 1.5 billion SMS vs 13 million MMS; MMS usage had shrunk by over 96% by the time of its shutdown.
- SMS volumes in Germany fell from nearly 60 billion in 2012 to about 2.9 billion in the previous year, a decline of more than 95%.
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MMS to be discontinued across Germany on June 30
German mobile operators will fully discontinue MMS on 30 June 2026. Vodafone had already switched off MMS on 17 January 2023; Telekom, O2 and 1&1 will remove the service at the end of June. MMS, introduced in the early 2000s to carry photos and small media files, never achieved mass adoption and declined rapidly as smartphones and internet messengers (WhatsApp, Telegram, Signal, Threema, Facebook Messenger) became dominant. Vodafone usage data show a peak in December 2012 (13 million MMS vs 1.5 billion SMS for Vodafone customers) and more than a 96% drop in MMS use by shutdown. SMS volumes in Germany fell from about 60 billion in 2012 to 2.9 billion in the last reported year. The industry is positioning Rich Communication Services (RCS) — Universal Profile 4.0 finalised by GSMA in March 2026 — as the successor for richer carrier messaging.
German Carriers Plan 2G Shutdown in 2028
O2 Telefónica announced in Munich that it will shut down the legacy 2G (GSM) mobile network in the second half of 2028 in Germany. Vodafone and Deutsche Telekom have made similar commitments for 2028; Vodafone plans to keep part of the 2G spectrum available for certain industrial IoT use cases until 2030. Operators say freeing 2G frequencies will allow reallocation to 4G and 5G, improving capacity and coverage for modern data-heavy use like streaming and mobile work. 3G has already been decommissioned (2021); Bundesnetzagentur figures cited show near-nationwide coverage for 2G (99.78% by at least one operator), 4G (97.79%) and 5G (95.29%). Consumers with very old handsets and some IoT devices will need migration plans.
SMS Usage Falls 95% in Germany
A t3n report summarises official and industry data showing a collapse in SMS usage in Germany: from about 60 billion messages in 2012 to roughly 2.9 billion last year, a decline of over 95 percent. The drop is attributed to widespread smartphone adoption and free instant-messaging apps (WhatsApp, Telegram, Signal, Threema, Facebook Messenger). Bitkom data cited in the article says 86% of Germans owned a smartphone in 2026 and average daily smartphone use is 180 minutes (216 minutes for ages 16–29). WhatsApp is reported to have about 60 million daily users in Germany (~80% of internet users). The Bundesnetzagentur provided the SMS and fixed-line statistics; the article also notes banks and companies are moving away from SMS-based verification toward alternative methods such as biometrics. Vodafone Germany’s head Marcel de Groot commented that SMS is losing relevance, especially among younger users.
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