Global Telecom: China Mobile 4G subscribers to reach 150M

China Mobile 4G Subscribers To Reach 150M

• China Mobile is predicting that by the end of next year the company will have 150 million 4G mobile subscribers. The company expects to reach 300 million 4G subscribers by the end of 2016. In October, China Mobile said it reached 50 million 4G subscribers, which was the company’s goal for the full year.

• China Mobile is the largest carrier with more than 700 million subscribers.

Bharti Airtel expands LTE services

• Bharti Airtel is expanding LTE services in the Punjab region. The carrier is investing $650 million to expand 4G to all cities, towns and villages across Punjab. Bharti Airtel reached the agreement with the Punjab government which also includes laying additional fiber optic cables to boost broadband services in rural areas.

BT poised to make decision

• Executives with Orange say they are expecting BT Group to decide before Christmas whether to bid on EE or O2. EE is owned by Orange and Deutshe Telekom, while O2 is owned by Telefonica.

Vodafone won’t cause disruption for millions

• Vodafone continues to run on an expired spectrum license in India. The carrier reports that it can’t return the spectrum it holds in Delhi because its nearly 10 million customers could experience service disruptions. The company has asked the telecom department for a 45-day extension, but the department has yet to respond. Vodafone executives have stated that even if the extension is denied, it still will not be able to return the spectrum immediately.