In an effort to reallocate spectrum, many carriers are setting target dates to do away with GSM networks. It appears that 2017 will be the year that GSM will take its place in the mobile network afterlife, but it may surprise you how many devices still operate on 2G network.
Three operators in Singapore are the latest to announce plans to turn off their GSM networks, setting a date of April 1, 2017. Australian carrier Telestra already announced their plans to pull the plug on the second-generation network by the end of 2016. AT&T has set a target date of Jan. 1, 2017.
For most consumers this will not cause much of a ripple in their mobile consciousness as a majority are already on 3G and 4G networks, but it could mean trouble for machine-to-machine connections.
Because many of the M2M devices, such as vehicle alarms and vending machines, last longer than your typical cellphone, they still use GSM networks for their transmission needs. There were still about 160 million GSM-connected devices at the end of last year, according to Machina Research. Matt Hatton, CEO of Machina said chipmakers are working on cheaper LTE modems, but the majority of the new M2M devices still operate on GSM.
In spite of this, carriers have a huge incentive to disconnect their GSM networks. Turning them off means they can reallocate spectrum to 3G and 4G networks, allowing them to use the spectrum more efficiently. This means they can serve more customers and bring in more revenue.
But not all carriers are in such a hurry to cut the cord on GSM. French operator Orange has no immediate plans for the demise of their GSM network, according to Yves Bellego, director of technical and network strategy at Orange. Norwegian operator Telenor recently announced plans to turn off its 3G network before its GSM, targeting 2020 for the former and 2025 for the latter.
It’s no coincidence that European carriers are in less of a hurry to do away with GSM as there is still a lot of money to be made on roaming. Hatton said they may also run into some regulatory issues.
