The telco expects its LTE network to reach 99% of the Italian population by the end of 2019.
Telecom Italia announced plans to invest 11 billion euros ($11.8 billion) over the next three years to launch premium digital services and improve its network infrastructure across Italy. The European telco said that approximately 5 billion euros will be invested to expand the telco’s network infrastructure.
With the investment program, TIM plans to expand its LTE network to reach 99% of the country’s population and its fiber optic network to reach 95% of the population by the end of 2019. TIM said that 50 major towns and cities across Italy will have connection speeds of up to one gigabit per second by the end of 2019.
LTE customers are expected to account for around 90% of the operator’s mobile broadband customers by 2019, thanks to almost blanket coverage of the country with network speeds up to 75 Mbps, with peaks of 500 Mbps in the main cities due to the use of carrier aggregation technologies, TIM said.
The operator also said it expects to end losses to its fixed line network by the end of 2018, mainly due to the launch of a number of internet of things-related devices.
Swedish regulator launches consultation process for 5G trials
Swedish telecom regulator PTS launched a consultation process to evaluate potential interest in spectrum licenses for the launch of “5G” trials.
The regulator said it plans to offer 100 to 200 megahertz of spectrum in the 3.4 to 3.6 GHz band and up to 1,000 megahertz in the 26 GHz band to test 5G technologies. PTS said it’s looking to grant long-term licenses beginning in 2020 to allow the commercial deployment of 5G networks.
“A favorable and enabling environment for 5G-development can contribute to strengthen Sweden’s position as a leading IT nation,” the regulator said in a statement.
