4G in the UK at month’s end after talks clear EE to launch
HIGH-SPEED mobile internet will be coming to the UK at the end of the month, the country’s first 4G operator announced yesterday.
EE – the owner of Orange and T-Mobile – said it will launch its new network, also called EE, on 30 October.
The company has been able to launch the network after the UK’s mobile operators agreed a ceasefire over 4G on Tuesday evening, putting a stop to years of legal threats. The so-called “peace talks” mean that EE is free to roll out its own network, in exchange for other high speed networks being opened up in May. EE is able to launch its own 4G network earlier than others because it had its own network specially cleared in August. The firm’s chief executive Olaf Swantee said the launch was a “significant milestone” for the UK.
Industry sources yesterday said EE would have been able to roll out the network several weeks earlier were it not for the legal threats from other parties.
EE will enjoy an eight-month headstart over 4G networks, and will also be the only network the iPhone 5 will run 4G services on.