Almost ¾ of German businesses continue to utilize fax machines.
Despite the surge of emails, messaging apps, and video conferencing, a FAX machine still holds significance in the German office routine for a majority of companies, as per a study by Bitkom. The survey, involving nearly 600 businesses with over 20 employees, revealed that 77% of these companies still employ FAX machines. In a quarter of these companies, FAX usage is quite frequent or incredibly frequent. About half of the companies that utilize FAX printers miss no opportunity to print out all incoming documents.
"Though the usage of FAX has been waning in German companies for years, the transformation turns out to be happening at a leisurely pace, especially since there are now more comfortable and secure modes of communication," shared Daniil Heinze, Bitkom expert for digital business processes. This commentary includes encrypted transmissions or specialized, legally secure Email formats.
More than half of the respondents admitted to continuing FAX usage because of regulatory requirements for communication via this channel. For approximately one-third of the companies, established habits played a pivotal role.
