EE Expands 4G LTE Mobile Broadband Network to 80% of UK

Mobile operator EE has announced that their “superfast” 4G (LTE at 1800MHz, 800MHz and 2.6GHz) based Mobile Broadband network is now available to 80% of the United Kingdom’s population, which should reach 98% by the end of 2015.

Overall EE added an extra 350 cities and towns to its 4G network coverage last year, which gives them a total of 510 large UK towns and cities (i.e. those with populations of 10,000+) and 3,894 villages / small towns. The smallest connected community is that of Elvanfoot, which is home to just 52 people in South Lanarkshire (Scotland).

The latest towns to go live over the past month or so include: Hastings, Worthing, Worcester, Scunthorpe, Crewe, Rugby, Bognor Regis, Stratford-Upon-Avon, Bangor and Llandudno. East London’s Tech City area also boasted the three busiest 4G mobile sites in 2014: Silicon Roundabout, Hoxton and Shoreditch High Street.

Meanwhile six times more 4G data was uploaded and downloaded by customers in 2014 than in 2013, which is one reason why EE also had to double the available capacity across its entire network in 2014. Admittedly this sounds big, but these days it’s fairly normal for ISPs and mobile operators.

EE also claims to have added a record 5.7 million customers to their 4G network in 2014, with 1.7 million in the last two months alone. This apparently beats their 6 million year-end target, and means EE has added more 4G customers than any other operator in Europe.

Otherwise 2015 looks to be another busy and complicated year for EE. Not only does the operator plan to expand the availability of their new 300Mbps LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) service into more parts of London, Birmingham, Liverpool and Manchester, but they will also trial a new 400Mbps+ upgrade at Wembley Stadium (here).

On top of all that BT are currently in the final stages of closing a complicated deal to buy EE (here), which could result in a very different looking UK market by the end of 2015.