Ofcom, the UK telecommunication regulator ruled to allow the Everything Everywhere group to begin offering 4G to its customers. This is ahead of the scheduled auction for the 4G spectrum. This has seen unfavorable reception by a lot of the group’s rivals. Everything Everywhere which runs T-Mobile and Orange already owns the 1800 MHz spectrum. The group is expected to roll out its 4G service on September 2012 placing it ahead of other telecomms operators.
Ofcom has been postponing the decision due to an objection by Everything Everywhere’s competitors. An original ruling earlier this year allowed the group to reuse the spectrum in the provision of LTE digital services. With the new decision, millions of consumers are expected to start enjoying LTE services before the end of this year. A huge part of the market will however be closed out to the original wave of services. Operators feel that the decision does little to create a level playing field.
Everything Everywhere owns the 2.1 GHz and 1800 MHz spectrums while Vodafone and O2 own the 900 MHz, 1800 MHz and 2.1 GHz spectrums. With the upcoming auction of the 4G, the 800 MHz and 2.6 GHz spectrums are up for sale.
via Slashgear
