The mobile operators Kyivstar, Vodafone Ukraine and lifecell, together with Huawei, have launched 4G at 23 more stations of Kyiv metro and in the tunnels between them.
According to the joint press release of the operators, in general, since October 28, the high-speed mobile Internet of three operators has been operating at 45 out of 46 underground stations.
4G will appear at the last Teremky station during December.
The launch of the 4G network in the metro began in March this year from the Akademmistechko station and continued gradually.
“It is interesting that almost 300,000 subscribers of all three operators use 4G Internet every day on average. Together, subscribers of mobile operators have already used more than 400 terabytes of traffic in the metro. This volume would be enough, for example, for a continuous viewing high quality video for 30 years,” the release notes.
For 4G operation in the metro Kyivstar, Vodafone Ukraine and lifecell use joint equipment from Huawei, but their own frequencies in accordance with licenses. Frequencies are used in two bands: 1800 MHz and 2600 MHz. According to the operators, the average 4G speed in the metro exceeds 40 Mbps.
4G, 4G INTERNET, 4G MOBILE, 4G NETWORK, KYIV METRO, KYIVSTAR, LIFECELL, MOBILE OPERATORS, VODAFONE
The mobile operator Vodafone Ukraine has launched a 4G LTE900 network in Sumy region, having installed 25 base stations, the company’s press service said on Friday, October 23.
According to a press release, the new coverage provides high-speed Internet for 195 settlements with a population of over 62,000 people.
To date, the operator has launched more than 530 base stations in the range of 900 MHz, which cover over 3,000 settlements. About 2.8 million people live on this territory.
The 4G LTE900 network from Vodafone Ukraine is already operating in Kyiv, Odesa, Vinnytsia, Volyn, Zhytomyr, Poltava, Khmelnytsky, Zakarpattia, Ivano-Frankivsk, Lviv, Mykolaiv, Sumy, Ternopil, Rivne, Chernivtsi, Cherkasy, Chernihiv regions and in the city of Ivano-Frankivsk.
Till the end of 2020, the LTE 900 MHz network will be launched in all regions of Ukraine, alternately from the west to the east.
According to licensing conditions, by mid-2022, mobile high-speed Internet coverage should be provided in settlements with a population of more than 2,000 people, covering 90% of the population of Ukraine. And the coverage of roads of international and national importance should be provided until mid-2024.
Vodafone Ukraine mobile operator has launched LTE-communications (4G) in the 900 MHz band in 128 settlements of Cherkasy region, thus providing high-speed Internet for almost 110,000 people.
According to company’s press service, in particular, the operator has launched 4G coverage in the 900 MHz band in more than 1,700 settlements of Kyiv, Odesa, Vinnytsia, Zhytomyr, Khmelnytsky, Zakarpattia, Ivano-Frankivsk, Lviv, Ternopil, Rivne, Volyn, Chernivtsi and Cherkasy regions, thus giving access to services for more than one million people.
By the end of 2020, the operator plans to launch the LTE network in the 900 MHz band in all regions of Ukraine: in turn from west to east.
As reported, according to the license terms, by mid-2022 the operators should provide mobile high-speed Internet coverage in settlements with population over 2,000 people, covering 90% of the population of Ukraine. 4G coverage for roads of international and national importance is to be provided until the middle of 2024.
The Vodafone Ukraine mobile operator expanded its 4G network in 18 Ukrainian regions in August 2020.
According to company’s press service, in particular, the operator has launched 4G coverage in 660 settlements of Vinnytsia, Volyn, Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk, Zhytomyr, Zakarpattia, Ivano-Frankivsk, Kyiv, Kirovohrad, Lviv, Odesa, Poltava, Rivne, Ternopil, Kherson, Khmelnytsky, Cherkasy and Chernivtsi regions over the past month.
To date, according to the data given, Vodafone Ukraine provides 4G coverage to 80% of Ukrainians.
The memorandum of intent for the joint use of the passive and active infrastructure of their mobile networks has been signed by the mobile communications operators Kyivstar and Vodafone Ukraine.
According to a joint press release of the companies issued on Thursday, sharing telecommunications infrastructure will enable the parties to accelerate the deployment of 4G networks in rural areas and on highways.
The memorandum takes into account the use of not only communication channels, but also towers, as well as other equipment. Cooperation using telecom infrastructure will enable operators to avoid duplication in the process of building networks, which will accelerate the provision of access to 4G/LTE services for subscribers living in sparsely populated areas.
Now Kyivstar and Vodafone Ukraine are identifying mobile network sections and settlements for sharing infrastructure. The operators plan to begin practical implementation of the memorandum in November-December 2020 after the approval of the project by government bodies.
“Partnership and cooperation in the use of mobile networks will allow the operators to accelerate the bridging of the digital gap between megacities and villages, and to fulfill their investment plans despite the decrease in market income. We proposed that all mobile operators of Ukraine join the memorandum,” Kyivstar President Alexander Komarov said.
He said that the memorandum is open to all players who want to develop new mobile technologies on mutually beneficial conditions.
“Such unbiased and seemingly insurmountable circumstances as lockdown and the lack of roaming revenues could make adjustments to the implementation of coverage. But we understand the importance of building infrastructure as soon as possible to ensure equal access to digital services. Sharing networks will make our investment more effective,” CEO of Vodafone Ukraine Olha Ustinova said.
In her opinion, this will also give the operator the opportunity not only to adhere to the obligations assumed for coverage, but also to bring high-speed Internet to small villages with a population of less than 2,000 people.
For its part, the National Commission for Communications and Informatization Regulation (NCCR) also welcomes cooperation between operators in building networks.
“We are pleased that Vodafone Ukraine supported this idea of the NCCR. We welcome cooperation between operators, in particular in building networks,” Chairman of the commission Oleksandr Zhyvotovsky said, expressing the hope that other operators will also join the memorandum and the process of mutually beneficial cooperation.
According to him, active sharing is an effective way to optimize the costs of building and maintaining networks and quickly covering the territory of Ukraine with a high-quality signal and mobile Internet access and fulfilling licensing conditions in the 900 MHz band.
The signing of the memorandum was supported by the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine.
In accordance with the decree of the President of Ukraine on some measures to improve access to mobile Internet, mobile operators should provide 4G communications to settlements with a population of 2,000 or more, as well as major roads in the coming years.
The mobile operator Vodafone Ukraine in the first quarter of 2020 reached an income indicator of UAH 4.39 billion, which is 28% more than in the same period in 2019.
According to a press release, the operator’s OIBDA (operating income before depreciation of fixed assets and intangible assets) increased by 30% compared to the first quarter of 2019 and reached UAH 2.3 billion. OIBDA margin increased to 53.3%.
“In the first quarter, Vodafone Ukraine’s net loss amounted to UAH 744 million, which is connected with the exchange rate difference on the revaluation of eurobonds of $500 million issued by the company in February 2020 – the hryvnia devaluation at the end of the quarter compared to the rate on the date of receiving the loan amounted to 15%,” the company reports.
The mobile operator notes that, on average, according to the results of the first quarter, the Vodafone Ukraine data client used 4.6 GB of traffic per month. The growth in consumption became possible thanks to the active expansion of coverage of high-speed Internet networks.
Currently, according to the company, Vodafone’s 4G network is available to 71% of Ukrainians, 86% of the population can use 3G coverage. Over the year, the number of 4G base stations doubled, and the number of settlements with 4G network access tripled.
The company invested UAH 1.2 billion in the network in January-March of this year, including UAH 265 million of license cost in the 900 MHz band. The company’s total investment in the construction of high-speed mobile Internet networks amounted to UAH 26.6 billion.
