3 UK and T-Mobile Sharing the 3G
4 January 20083 UK and T-Mobile have signed an agreement to combine their 3G networks, a move that’s expected to provide 3G services across all of Britain by the finish of 2008. The two have formed a joint venture company named Mobile Broadband Network Ltd to supervise the creation and operation of the combined network. The contract will run until 2031, and the two will work as equal partners in this area while competing against each other in other markets.
The mobile giants have said that sharing the 3G networks will dramatically increase coverage for both operators, increase the quality of each and save the environment as well as cut costs on the new high-speed mobile broadband services. The agreement will also create Europe’s most extensive HSDPA network.
Although the JV covers the companies’ 3G networks, their core networks and T-Mobile’s 2G network will not be shared. T-Mobile and 3 will each be responsible for their individual customers and their services.
“From 2008, customers can expect to have access to high-speed 3G services in a greater number of locations than we can currently serve over our existing infrastructure,” said T-Mobile UK CEO Jim Hyde. “By collaborating with 3 UK, we can achieve this quicker and with greater economy; that’s a win-win in anyone’s language.”
To quell any ideas of a possible greater cooperation being in the works, when this agreement was first announced, 3 UK CEO Kevin Russell said that there have been no merger or acquisition talks between the two companies. He also added that there are no such talks in the foreseeable future.
The joint network is expected to be completed in a little over two years.
No comments yet