LONDON – BT, the owner of the EE mobile network in the United Kingdom, announced on Wednesday that it will phase out 3G in the next two years to free up airwaves for the rollout of 5G across the country by 2028. According to BT Consumer CEO Marc Allera, demand for mobile capacity is increasing by 40% per year, and the company’s 5G network has been activated in 160 towns and cities since its launch in 2019.
Since October, when the 5G-enabled iPhone 12 was released, traffic on its 5G network has more than doubled, he added.
While demand for 4G and 5G networks grew, traffic on older 3G and 2G networks declined, he noted. In March, 3G carried less than 3% of data traffic and 25% of voice traffic. In an online presentation, he added, “EE is the first operator to set a time period to discontinue providing 3G services in early 2023, with consumers supported to move off it in a phased transition in the months ahead.” Later in the decade, he added, 2G services, which are now 25 years old, would be phased out.
Third-generation mobile technology, which first appeared in the United Kingdom in 2003, provided a significant increase in data capacity, allowing internet access on mobile phones.
At the height of the dotcom boom in 2000, operators spent a staggering 22.5 billion pounds (US$31 billion) for 3G spectrum in the United Kingdom.
Following the fall of the bubble, operators slowed the rollout of new services.
By early 2023, BT expects its 5G network to cover 50% of the UK population, four years ahead of the government’s plan.
According to Allera, EE’s 5G network would cover more than 90% of the UK’s geography by 2028, and areas beyond that will be served via “requestable” 5G solutions such as satellite connections.
(1 US dollar = 0.7222 pounds)
(Paul Sandle contributed reporting, and Michael Holden edited the piece.)/n
