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EE’s new wireless internet service is ideally suited for customers in sparsely populated areas with limited access to fixed line broadband services
EE could provide superfast broadband access to an additional 580,000 homes and businesses in Britain’s rural communities, as it launches its new 4G wireless broadband solution.
The new technology targets homes and businesses in hard to reach and challenging locations, where local topography plays a significant role in reducing connectivity. Recent tests in Cumbria, home to a number of Britain’s most notorious not-spots, provided speeds in excess of 100 Mbps.
EE’s latest offering combines a 4GEE home router with a powerful external antenna, fixed to the customer’s premises. This combination gives strong, stable access to EE’s superfast 4G network, which currently extends to 90% of the UK’s landmass (which EE says is equal to 99.6% of UK homes). The company says that this solution is particularly suited to homes and businesses in sparsely populated areas with no access to fixed line services.
“As our network continues to expand into some of the most remote parts of the UK, we’ve seen the amazing impact that 4G connectivity can have on rural communities. Our newest 4G home broadband router and antenna takes this one step further, ensuring thousands of families in rural areas across the UK could enjoy the benefits of superfast broadband inside their home for the very first time – whether video-calling the grandparents or streaming their favourite TV series,” said Max Taylor, managing director of marketing at EE.
Ensuring high speed connectivity for Britain’s rural communities is a hot topic for the UK telecoms sector at the moment, with the UK government recently claiming to have achieved its target of providing 95% of properties in the country with access to superfast broadband services.
Despite this claim, many in the industry feel that more needs to be done to boost connectivity in the UK’s rural communities, particularly in terms of rolling out full fibre services.
“It was today announced that EE will offer fast wireless broadband to more than half a million rural homes in the UK. This will be a huge challenge, and take significant investment but is also a hugely positive step in the right direction. As a result, it mustn’t rest on the shoulders of EE alone," said Alastair Masson, head of Telco Media at NTT Data.
"It is by no means an easy task, and the broader industry must be part of shaping the strategy and the solution, while also considering how it fits in with various ongoing consultations around 5G and Ultrafast… Faster broadband will reinvent the UK’s network infrastructure and strengthen the economy ready for a potentially challenging post-Brexit environment,” he added.
Watch EE’s new initiative in action here and find out more about its extensive testing programme in Cumbria.
Mark Allera, CEO of EE, will be speaking at this year’s Connected Britain event, sharing insights into the company’s strategy for improving connectivity across the UK.
