New government plans mean that high-speed 4G mobile broadband should eventually be available to 98 percent of the population. That's higher than originally planned, and means it will be available in places that don't currently have mobile phone coverage of any kind.
Telecommunications regulator Ofcom has now published fuller details of the licensing process for the rights to provide 4G services. The winning bidders will be required to cover 98 percent of people by 2017, up from an original threshold of 95%. The networks will be assisted in this expansion by access to a £150 million government fund that had previously been set aside for expanding phone service in otherwise unprofitable rural regions.
Mobile companies have been critical of the revised rules for the license auctions. Everything Everywhere (the partnership of Orange and T-Mobile) says the requirement to cover more of the country could mean price rises for consumers. There was also disappointment that Ofcom has dropped a rule that guaranteed both Everything Everywhere and Three would be guaranteed some access to the 4G frequencies. Rivals Vodafone and O2 already control frequencies that could be converted to a 4G signal.
