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LONDON, July 14 (Reuters) - BT, the owner of
Britain's EE mobile company, said on Wednesday it would phase
out 3G in the next two years to free up airwaves to help bring
5G to the entire country by 2028.
BT Consumer CEO Marc Allera said demand for mobile capacity
was rising by 40% every year, and BT had switched on its 5G
network in 160 towns and cities since it launched in 2019.
Traffic had more than quadrupled on its 5G network since
October, when the 5G-enabled iPhone 12 launched, he said.
While 4G and 5G demand continued to rise, traffic carried on
older 3G and 2G networks was declining, he said. Less than 3% of
data and 25% of voice traffic was carried on 3G in March.
"EE is the first operator to set a time frame to stop
supporting 3G services in early 2023, with customers supported
to move off it in a phased transition in the months ahead," he
said in an online presentation.
The end of 2G services, which are now 25 years old, would
follow later in the decade, he added.
Third generation mobile technology, which launched in
Britain in 2003, offered a jump in data capacity, enabling
internet access on mobiles.
Operators spent an eye-watering 22.5 billion pounds ($31
billion) buying 3G spectrum in Britain in 2000 at the peak of
the dotcom boom.
After the bubble burst, operators scaled back the speed of
deployment of the new services.
BT said its 5G network would cover 50% of the UK population
by early 2023, four years ahead of the government's target.
By 2028, EE's 5G network would cover more than 90% of
Britain's landmass, Allera said, and anywhere beyond that would
be served by "requestable" 5G solutions, such as a satellite
connection.
($1 = 0.7222 pounds)
(Reporting by Paul Sandle; editing by Michael Holden)
