Operator says 300,000 customers have signed up to its 4G network since June 2012 launch.
SingTel this week announced its ‘4G’ LTE network has been extended to offer nationwide coverage.
The Singapore-based operator said street-level coverage is now available for 95% of the island via 800 outdoor mobile sites, while 550 indoor sites have been deployed to improve services in shopping malls, hotels, and other commercial buildings. Going forward, SingTel said it will extend its network to underground MRT (mass rapid transit) tunnels, reservoirs and national parks.
“In the last year, we have spent more than S$150 million (€92.9 million) to provide nationwide 4G coverage and will continue to invest to meet fast growing demand,” said Yuen Kuan Moon, CEO of SingTel’s consumer mobile arm, in a statement on Tuesday.
SingTel said it is also busy rolling out MIMO (multiple input multiple output) technology in busy locations, such as the Nex, Jurong Point, and Tampines shopping malls, and Changi airport, which will increase peak connection speeds to 150 Mbps. SingTel said the deployment will prepare its network for the “next generation of 4G devices”.
“More than 300,000 customers have signed up for our 4G service since its launch in June 2012,” said Yuen.
“As more 4G-enabled devices become available in the market, we expect the pace of adoption to accelerate,” he said, predicting that the majority of SingTel’s 3.8 million mobile customers will access its 4G network by 2015.
In addition, SingTel said it has also doubled the maximum download speeds on its HSPA network to 42 Mbps, which will be available to all postpaid 3G customers with compatible devices at no extra cost.
“In some locations, customers have reported as much as a four-fold increase in mobile broadband speeds,” said Yuen.
SingTel is Singapore’s biggest mobile operator by customers, ending 2012 with 3.8 million subscribers, compared to closest rival Starhub’s 2.2 million. Meanwhile, third-placed M1 reported having 2.05 million mobile customers at the end of March.
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