The UK telco plans to offer LTE-Advanced services in the largest cities during 2017
U.K. mobile operator EE, part of the BT Group, said it has added a third carrier to its LTE-Advanced network at Wembley Stadium, London, increasing the peak speed to up to 450 megabits per second for customers who own compatible 4G handsets.
The telco said this high-speed LTE-A network, using three-channel carrier aggregation, also will be activated in additional sites in Central London this year starting in east London’s Tech City, as well in other U.K. cities including Birmingham and Manchester throughout 2017.
EE representatives said subscribers with a Cat 9 device, including the HTC M10, Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge and the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 when it is available, will be able to access higher access speeds on EE’s LTE-A network.
EE has already deployed the first stage of its 4G+ (LTE-A) network – which uses two blocks of mobile spectrum – in more than 150 towns and cities across the U.K. The next phase to support Cat 9 devices will enable access to a third block of spectrum for high-speed 4G services on more than 500 sites across these towns and cities by the end of 2017. EE said it will use three carriers combining 20 megahertz of 1800 MHz spectrum with 35 megahertz of 2.6 GHz spectrum.
“There’s no point having the latest smartphones on a network that can’t support the top speeds the device is capable of. We’ve invested in our network to ensure that all of our customers get the most out of the amazing smartphones they have, and can keep up with the highest speeds that the latest devices offer,” EE CEO Marc Allera said. “With 4G+ now supporting Cat 9 devices, plus Wi-Fi Calling and 4G Calling, customers on EE will continue to get more from their new smartphone than on any other network in the U.K.”
EE’s 4G network covers more than two-thirds of the U.K. territory and 97% of the overall population, and is aiming to reach 95% of the U.K. territory by 2020.
The telco also said that it has invested in other technologies including Wi-Fi Calling and Voice over LTE.
EE ended June with 16.7 million customers in the 4G segment, according to BT Group’s latest financial report.
