4G mobile communication has finally come to Malta thanks to Vodafone, the first local operator to provide the next evolution in mobile technology that will provide higher internet access speeds comparable to what many users experience at home or at the office but with complete mobility.

However, Vodafone has reassured that older technologies like 2G and 3G will continue to be supported as only a very small percentage of users are ready to exploit 4G technology based on the Long Term Evolution (LTE) standard.

The announcement comes somehow as a surprise as until a few months ago the three national mobile operators had told i-Tech that they were interested in 4G but reiterated that there was still ample capacity on their 3G networks or in wi-fi. In the meantime, the European Commission has been piling pressure on European mobile operators to introduce or extend their 4G services so as not to lag behind other countries around the world, especially the US and far eastern countries, with consequences to the fragile European economy.

“Vodafone continue to believe in the quality and capability of 3G as a technology, which can service all but the most demanding of data applications on the move,” according to Sandro Pisani, head of consumer business at Vodafone, who spoke to i-Tech after the announcement.

“Our 3G network has ample capacity to continue to service the growth in mobile data for the foreseeable future, and with fewer than five per cent of devices in Malta capable of supporting 4G it will continue to provide a great data experience for the majority of our customers. However, at Vodafone we believe that the launch of 4G in Malta is a key enabler to driving the whole mobile data ecosystem,”

The service will be commercially launched next month in selected areas where data usage is heavy, such as the Sliema, St Julian’s and Valletta area.

New tariff plans will be announced in due course to make the best use of the 4G speeds which are expected to double those provided through 3G right now at peak levels.

“We will progressively move towards nationwide coverage based on customer uptake and demand – ensuring that 4G will be available where our customers really need it. The timeframes are really dependent on how quickly we see device penetration of 4G, and how much and where our customers consume data,” added Mr Pisani.

“The actual speed our customers will see depends on many factors, as in the case with all broadband data techno­logies,” explained Andrew de La Torre, head of technology at the mobile operator.

“The version of 4G that has been deployed by Vodafone in Malta is technically capable of supporting theoretical peak speeds up to 300Mbps for download and 75Mbps for upload. However, the majority of mobile devices available today are limited to speeds of 100Mbps download and 50Mbps upload. In a real network environment, taking into account factors such as coverage, network load, and device performance, we would expect our customers to see peak speeds (in the best coverage areas) of around 85Mbps download and 35Mbps upload, with the average experience across our customers being around 40Mbps download and 25Mbps upload.”

To connect to the 4G network, users need a 4G-enabled device and be in a 4G coverage area, however, some devices are only 4G ‘ready’ and require some updates to be able to connect. Vodafone said it will take care of this for its customers. Also, some older generation SIM cards will not support 4G, but Vodafone reassured it can quickly perform a swap for a newer SIM for any customers wanting 4G services.

In Malta, Vodafone have adopted the LTE standard for 4G. This is the globally recognised de facto standard for 4G mobile networks, as defined by 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) which is a global forum uniting the six major telecommunications standards bodies around the world.

This is fully compatible with all common commercially available 4G devices, and Vodafone in Malta have also implemented its LTE in the most common (and globally aligned) spectrum band at 1800Mhz, meaning all devices will be able to connect to its 4G network. At the same time there are no immediate plans to decommission the 2G/GPRS network, since the operator continues to see very high levels of traffic over this technology, added Mr de La Torre.

For Vodafone to launch this new service it had to implement a complete end to end upgrade of its network and IT systems, including a review of its radio network, transmission network and core network to enable 4G to be supported. At the same time it has developed new products and capabilities in its customer care, provisioning and billing systems.

Asked for figures about data consumption in Malta, both Mr Pisani and Mr de La Torre kept back, saying it’s commercially sensitive information. However, they confirmed that data usage is highest on Vodafone’s internet key products at well over 1.5GB per month, with tablets coming next and smartphones behind that.

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