CWU welcomes O2 4G trial
15th November 2011
CWU - the union representing workers in the telecom and mobile
sector - welcomes O2's 4G trial launched today (Tuesday) which
will cover 40 square kilometres of London.
Andy Kerr, CWU deputy general secretary,
said: "We warmly welcome the launch of O2's 4G trial
across London. Clearly, this is good news as it's about
trialling future technologies and assessing new capabilities.
"With the explosion in demand for smartphones and data
downloads on the move there's a desperate need for increased
spectrum to service this rapidly growing market. This trial is one
part of essential investment in 4G which will potentially bring
large dividends to mobile companies.
"When the auction for 4G spectrum takes place next year we
want to see a plan which ringfences some of the income to be used
for universal access to broadband, addressing the problems which
the digital divide will bring to businesses and services across the
UK."
Consumers, businesses and venue owners will be provided with the
latest 4G technology as part of a nine-month trial so the firm can
collect information about the performance of the network and
receive feedback from users.
The initiative has been welcomed by Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt.
