Carriers Band Together to Speed Up UK's 4G Roll-out

The UK has been waiting a long time for 4G. Though many of today's high-end phones come with support for 4G LTE, customers in the United Kingdom are losing out. Telecoms watchdog Ofcom just gave Everything Everywhere the go-ahead to roll out its own 4G LTE network ahead of competitors, but everyone else is stuck waiting for the spectrum auction that will provide them with the extra spectrum required to launch their own 4G services. Even then, mobile operators are threatening litigation over concerns that they'll get the short end of the stick in terms of spectrum allocation.

The company will be responsible for ensuring consumers continue to receive clear Freeview TV signals following the roll out of 4G mobile services in the 800 MHz spectrum band. The early creation of such a company was one of the solutions highlighted by Ofcom and the government during conversations with mobile operators about speeding up the roll-out of 4G.

The UK's first 4G network, run by Everything Everywhere via repurposed spectrum that it already owns, will launch by the end of October. Other networks will have to wait until next year before they can roll out competing technology.

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Jane McEntegart
Contributor

Jane McEntegart is a writer, editor, and marketing communications professional with 17 years of experience in the technology industry. She has written about a wide range of technology topics, including smartphones, tablets, and game consoles. Her articles have been published in Tom's Guide, Tom's Hardware, MobileSyrup, and Edge Up.

  • Onihikage
    Naturally, the US companies would rather fight over bandwidth, buy each other off, and ultimately form a mono- or duopoly than stoop to "cooperation" or "mutually beneficial agreements" to get a good network up the fastest. What is this, some kinda hippie's wet dream?*


    *sarcasm
    Reply
  • derekullo
    4G looks painful.
    Reply
  • vaughn2k
    4G looks scary
    Reply