The Verizon mmWave and C-Band network now covers more than 175 million people
Verizon announced this week that its 5G Ultra Wideband service — the brand name for its millimeter wave (mmWave) and C-Band network — now covers more than 175 million people. During an investment event earlier this year, Verizon promised that it would reach this milestone by the end of 2022, putting this recent announcement almost a month ahead of schedule. Further, the carrier said it will achieve 5G Ultra Wideband nationwide coverage in the first quarter of 2023.
Additionally, Verizon claimed that its C-band rollout is “a full 13 months ahead of the original schedule, and continues to accelerate.” According to Opensignal, Verizon’s C-Band deployments are helping the carrier catch up to T-Mobile US, which has, on several occasions, emerged as the 5G frontrunner when it comes to speed, availability and reach. More specifically, Verizon’s speed showed the users experienced an average 5G download speed increase of 15.8%, with the share of C-Band readings growing from 16.2% to nearly 50%.
In a press statement, Verizon said it will activate 100 MHz of C-Band spectrum in many markets, especially rural and suburban ones to provide more coverage. This is a “significant step up from the 60 MHz of spectrum available when deployment first began,” said the carrier, adding that it will also deploy up to 200 MHz of C-Band spectrum deployed in several markets once all of its licensed spectrum is made available to provide “exceptional speed and capacity.”
On the mmWave side of things, Verizon said it will continue to deploy the high-band spectrum in densely populated areas such as venues, stadiums, arenas, airports, major metro areas and office complexes, and in private network deployments for enterprise customers.
“As proud as I am to have crossed this milestone, I am equally proud of the way we are building our network – with the most advanced technologies, industry leading security, a robust fiber underpinning and a robust and varied spectrum portfolio,” said Hans Vestberg, chairman and CEO of Verizon. “We are building this right. We are building this as a platform for innovation for years to come.”
