EE, the largest mobile carrier in the UK, has announced that its 4G Network is now officially bigger than any of the previous generation 3G networks in the country thanks to a new spectrum band. Yesterday, the UK’s largest carrier switched on its latest 800 MHz spectrum capacity at over 700 sites across the UK, which have allowed it to cover a further 5,000 square kilometres which previously had zero 4G coverage, something that will help the carrier reach its goal of covering 95% of the UK by 2020. Aside from further coverage for previous 3G-only areas, the new spectrum also penetrates walls, trees and other objects which much more ease than other spectrum bands, meaning indoor coverage for over 500,000 homes has also been improved. Thanks to all of this, parts of Glasgow, Somerset, Snowdonia and more now all have access to EE’s fast 4G network, something that is sure to tempt a number of customers to make the switch, the only requirement is a VoLTE-enabled phone so users can place phone calls, due to the fact that 4G is the network available in those areas. Nonetheless, the expansion of its network now means the company covers over 75% of UK land, giving them the largest 4G Network on the market.
As part of their 2020 goal, the company also has plans to switch on further 800MHz capacity at over 3,000 more sites by the end of next year, which should lead to coverage in even more areas of the country and give them an even bigger lead over its competitors. Unfortunately, though, it looks as though the company will have to make do with its current spectrum bands to meet its 95% coverage goal, due to the fact that the company, along with its parent company BT have been banned from biding on one of the two spectrum bands at next year’s 4G auction.
Along with the spectrum switch-on announcement, the company also took the opportunity to push coverage clarity, by asking Ofcom, as well as other carriers, to report land coverage, instead of population coverage, when talking about their networks, just as EE will do from January 2017 onwards. As well as this, the company has also launched an online map that allows customers to check coverage, along with a status checker in case of any network downtime. The carrier is definitely serious about being clear to its customers, as well as providing the best 4G coverage to UK customers, so it appears the company is on track to meeting its 2020 goal.