Posts Tagged 4G mobile
Opposition hits out at Government over 4G auction delays
Posted by Jeremy in Latest Broadband News on January 17, 2012
A prominent Labour party member has blamed the Government for delays regarding the auctioning of 4G mobile spectrum bandwidth, arguing that as a result, the UK economy is losing in excess of one million pounds every day. The Shadow Minister for Media, Helen Goodman, believes that the Government is not pressuring telecoms industry regulator Ofcom to finalise conditions of the auction process enough. She also alleges the ongoing delays have already cost the economy millions of pounds and the figure is only set to increase until the auction takes place.
The 4G auction is expected to raise between two and four billion pounds for the Government, with an added three-hundred million pounds per year in licensing fees. Following consultation with mobile network operators, Ofcom is set to finalise the conditions the auction will take place under and announce a date for it to take place later in the year. This means that 4G services will not be available until the final quarter of 2013, at the earliest, with some industry commentators fearing networks may not be operational before 2015.
“The auction could have taken place in 2010 but this government decided not to give Ofcom the backup to go ahead with the sale of 4G. Consumers need better mobile coverage, particularly in rural areas, and it is disappointing that it has taken the government 18 months to get on with the auction.” Goodman said.
She added: “At a time of deep cuts to the public sector, the government is in effect losing almost £1m in revenue a day. We will be one of the last major countries in Europe to get 4G coverage, which is shameful because Britain is one of the largest producers of mobile phone technology in the world.”
The possibility of auctioning off bandwidth on the 4G spectrum was investigated in 2009, but the standards for 4G had not been finalised then. Ofcom has since blamed issues getting the UK aligned with European networks and the slow rate the digital TV switchover has taken place at for delays arranging the auction.
LTE trial begins in Cornwall
Posted by Jeremy in Latest Broadband News on October 10, 2011
Cornwall has been chosen as the unlikely testing ground for an extremely fast form of mobile web browsing, known as LTE. LTE is the likely provider of what will become known as 4G connectivity through mobile phones in the future in the United Kingdom, and is used in many places throughout Europe already.
The trial, which is being conducted jointly by Everything Everywhere and BT, is taking place in a Village called St Newlyn East, just outside of Newquay. It is believed that speeds of up to 100Mbps could well be achievable with this sort of technology. The test is likely to produce slower speeds than this, but the main function of the trial is to understand the capabilities of different companies using different ranges in the spectrum in order to satisfy customers. With the belief that more and more people are going to be using mobile internet connections in the future, Everything Everywhere had this to say on the subject:
“Soon, more people will be accessing the internet on their mobile devices than on their PCs, and that means we need the right kind of networks in place to deliver the right kind of experience for our customers. That’s why, as the UK’s largest communications company, we are leading the development and introduction of new technologies like 4G. This next generation mobile network will allow individuals and businesses across Britain to access the people, places and things they want, wherever they are, whenever they want.” Nigel Stagg, CEO of BT Wholesale, also felt that they were contributing the the nations need, rather than their own business model:
“BT is committed to working with the government and using technology innovation to find ways of addressing the remaining challenges within the UK where there are still broadband ‘not-spots’. The final ten per cent of the country is exceedingly difficult to reach with the available standard fixed line solutions. Our proof of concept trial in Cornwall will test the capabilities and services that a shared fixed and mobile data network can support and is just one of the options, along with fibre and other mobile and wireless technologies that we are looking at to offer a possible solution to the rural broadband challenge.”
It is fantastic to see such a great leap forward being taken in terms of mobile browsing, and as many people accept that this could well be the significant future of broadband internet connections, it could not come too soon.