BROWSING: O2

EE expands 5G to 12 new cities in the UK

  U.K. carrier EE, part of telecom group BT, announced it has switched on 5G technology in 12 new cities and towns across the country. The new areas covered by EE’s 5G network are Aberdeen, Aldershot, Barrhead, Blackpool, Castleford, Crawley, Mirfield, Oxford, Porthcawl, Shipley, Stafford and...

Telefonica, Liberty Global to launch 5G in 100 UK cities by end-2021

  Telefonica and Liberty Global announced the aim to offer 5G services in 100 towns and cities across the U.K. by the end of 2021, following the proposed merger of Telefonica’s O2 and Virgin Media, U.K. newspaper The Times reported. According to the report, Telefonica’s CEO...

Ericsson extends 5G partnership with UK’s O2

  Ericsson has been selected by U.K. carrier O2 to deploy its 5G Radio Access Network (RAN) to upgrade existing 2G/3G/4G sites as part of a network modernization program. Following the launch of O2’s 5G commercial network in October last year, the extended partnership with Ericsson...

Cisco and Telefónica write ‘cybersecurity blueprint’ for autonomous vehicles in the UK

The UK divisions of US networking giant Cisco and Spanish telecoms group Telefónica have contributed to a new “cybersecurity blueprint” to protect the UK from cyber-attacks on connected and autonomous vehicles and transport systems. The pair joined with the Warwick Manufacturing Group at the University...

Liberty Global, Telefonica agree to merge UK operations

  Liberty Global and Telefonica have reached an agreement to merge their U.K. operations in a 50-50 joint venture. This move brings together the country's largest mobile operator, O2, with cable operator Virgin Media and its MVNO Virgin Mobile. The combined subscriber base of the two companies,...

Vodafone urges London to award more 5G spectrum now due to COVID-19

U.K. carrier Vodafone has has written to the government calling for the planned auction of 5G spectrum to be dropped due to the coronavirus (Covid-19) crisis, local newspaper The Telegraph reported. The auction is expected to raise over £1 billion ($1.23 billion). The operator has written to...

UK regulator finalizes rules for upcoming 5G spectrum auction

  U.K. telecom regulator Ofcom has finalized rules for an upcoming auction of spectrum in the 700 MHz and 3.6 GHz to 3.8 GHz bands, with the aim of boosting the rollout of 5G technology across the country. The regulator said in a release that it...

Tesco Mobile launches 5G in 24 UK cities via O2’s network

  Tesco Mobile has officially launched its 5G network in 24 towns and cities across the U.K., using infrastructure from mobile operator O2. Some of the cities in which the company is already offering its 5G service includes Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Cardiff, Leeds, Liverpool,...

Three UK to offer 5G services in 65 new cities by end-February

Three UK using 3.6 GHz for its 5G deployment U.K. mobile operator Three expects its 5G service to be available in 65 new locations across the country from the end of February, the telco said in a release. Some of the new cities in which...

O2 UK launches LTE-M network on 50 cell sites, more to follow

As IoT devices and applications continues to rise, O2 is confident that LTE-M will continue to support that increase Telefonica’s O2 UK has launched its 4G-based LTE-M networks of 50 of its cell sites, claiming to be the first in the UK to do so....

BT to face higher costs due to Huawei’s restrictions in the UK: CEO

  U.K. telecom group BT said that the decision by the UK government to restrict the use of Huawei’s kit in the country’s 5G networks would have a cost of £500 million ($655 million) for the company over the next five years. “We are in the...

O2 partners up for UK OpenRAN project

O2 expects the commercial deployment of OpenRAN to accelerate over the next 18-24 months O2, the U.K. operator owned by Telefonica, will work with Mavenir, DenseAir and WaveMobile to deploy 4G and 5G networks over OpenRAN solutions in dense environments and more isolated rural communities....

O2’s 5G coverage reaches 20 UK cities by end-2019

  U.K. telco O2 says it is providing 5G service in 20 cities across the country as of the end of 2019. O2, which is part of Telefonica, initially launched its 5G service in October, in London, Edinburgh, Cardiff, Belfast, Leeds and Slough. It subsequently switched...

U.K carriers accelerate 5G deployments during 2019

EE, BT and O2 all have commercial 5G services The main cities across the U.K started to receive 5G coverage during the second half of 2019 as local carriers rapidly launched the technology for both residential and corporate customers. EE, owned by telecommunications group BT, recently...

O2 to provide 5G for autonomous car testbed in London

UK telco O2 has signed an agreement to provide 5G connectivity for the testing of connected and autonomous vehicles (CAVs) in the Smart Mobility Living Lab (SMLL) in London, the carrier said in a release. O2 said that its 3.4 GHz "5G-ready" spectrum will enable car manufacturers, self-driving...

UK government set to allow Huawei to take part in 5G deployments: report

  U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson is preparing to allow Chinese vendor Huawei to participate in future 5G deployments in the country despite the pressure by the U.S government, according to a report by the Sunday Times. Citing senior government sources, the report stated that the...

UK regulator confirms new 5G spectrum auction in 2020

  U.K. telecommunications regulator Ofcom has confirmed plans to release additional spectrum for the provision of 5G services in spring 2020. In a statement, Ofcom said that the auction will include 80 megahertz in the 700 MHz band and 120 megahertz in the 3.6-3.8 GHz band...

O2 launches 5G services in six UK cities

  U..K carrier O2, owned by Spanish telecommunciations group Telefonica, announced the launch of its commercial 5G network in the U.K. O2’s 5G network is now available in certain areas of Belfast, Cardiff, Edinburgh, London, Slough and Leeds. O2’s initial focus for its 5G network is...

BT launches 5G services in more than 20 UK cities

  BT has commercial launched its 5G mobile service for consumers and business customers in more than 20 cities and large towns across the U.K. The services, dubbed BT Plus and BT Business, were already available in cities including London, Birmingham, Cardiff, Manchester, Edinburgh, Belfast, Coventry,...

Three launches 5G broadband offering in Central London

  U.K. mobile operator Three has launched 5G services in the country with the initial offering of a high-speed 5G broadband service in parts of London, the company said in a release. Three said that customers in London can have access to one single 5G home...

O2 sets October launch for 5G in the UK

  U.K. operator O2, owned by Spanish telecommunications group Telefonica, has announced plans to launch 5G in the country in October. The telco said it aims to cover a total of 20 town and cities with 5G technology this year and a total of 50 by...

UK carriers Vodafone, O2 strike network sharing deal for 5G

U.K. telecommunications operators Vodafone and O2 Telefónica UK (O2) announced that they have agreed to share 5G active equipment, such as radio antennas, on joint network sites across the country. The two carriers said that this network sharing agreement will allow them to speed up...

Huawei is already working with UK carriers to deploy 5G: Report

  Chinese vendor Huawei is currently involved in the deployment of 5G networks in the U.K., according to a report by U.K. paper The Observer. According to the report, major U.K. carriers have built their 5G networks with the help from Huawei. The Chinese company is...

Telefónica O2 and UK Space Agency test 5G and satellite for autonomous vehicles

UK operator Telefónica O2 has joined with the UK Space Agency on a new four-year public-private sector partnership to test 5G and satellite communications for autonomous vehicles. Project Darwin, announced by the UK government, is co-funded via the UK Space Agency’s investment in the European...