T-MOBILE AND O2 SIGN LTE NETWORK SHARING AGREEMENT

Prague, 5 May 2014 – On Friday, 2 May, T-Mobile and O2 signed an agreement on sharing their fourth-generation (LTE) mobile networks. This partnership will help introduce high-quality, high-speed internet services in the larger part of the Czech Republic as early as this year. Both companies will continue using their own network infrastructures and will follow completely independent business strategies.

The signing of the LTE network sharing agreement marks the successful completion of the negotiations between T-Mobile and O2 conducted since the end of February this year. Sharing of transmitters will enable faster rollout of the fastest mobile internet network than that stipulated by the frequency auction conditions. Additionally, it will help increase the efficiency of the LTE networks’ operation and maintenance, which will in turn have a positive impact on the environment.

“This is an important strategic step which builds on the agreement on sharing the existing 2G and 3G mobile networks,” says Milan Vašina, T-Mobile’s Managing Director, adding: “This partnership will not only enable us to roll out the fastest internet coverage earlier, but it will also bring savings which will allow us to make further investments in our networks and services.”

“This agreement will help us bring fast mobile internet to Czech customers all over the country – in rural and urban areas alike – in a short period of time. Network sharing is a Europe-wide trend, which is confirmed by successful similar partnerships in the United Kingdom, Sweden and France,” says Luis Malvido, CEO of O2.

In coming weeks, the two operators will conduct initial sharing trials with the purpose of testing primarily the functionality of the proposed technical solution. After all of the necessary processes have been debugged in the trial conditions, the LTE network sharing project will be put into commercial operation in the second half of 2014.

The fourth-generation network sharing project involves the entire territory of the Czech Republic, except for Prague and Brno. T-Mobile will be responsible for the management and operation of the LTE networks in the western part of the Czech Republic, while O2 will operate them in the eastern part of the country. In the first stage, the download and upload speeds in the LTE network thus established will be up to 75 Mbps and 25 Mbps, respectively, which are several times higher than in the case of the 3G network. The speeds will be further increased in the future.

T-Mobile and O2 will fulfil all of the obligations arising from the conditions of last year’s spectrum auction independently. Network sharing will involve only the radio elements of the operators’ networks; their core infrastructures will remain separate. T-Mobile and O2 will therefore continue to compete in terms of quality and offer of services and the speed of their networks.   

T-Mobile Czech Republic, a member of the international telecommunications group Deutsche Telekom, has almost 6.2 million customers, the number-one operator in the Czech market. T-Mobile is an integrated operator: in addition to telecommunications services, it offers comprehensive ICT solutions not only for companies, but also for other organizations and individuals. It provides outstanding services in the high-speed network, which was proved repeatedly by benchmark testing performed by umlaut (former P3) with Best-in-Test seal.

T-Mobile Czech Republic places emphasis on taking a responsible approach to the environment and society. It adheres to fair business practices, helps beneficial applications and services to see the light of day, supports non-profit organizations, small businesses and individuals, and lends a helping hand whenever crisis situations arise. The company’s employees serve as volunteers in many places across the entire Czech Republic.

More information about the company is available at www.t-mobile.cz, www.t-press.cz (the portal for journalists) and www.t-mobile.cz/pomahame (information on the company’s CSR activities).

Contact details of the press unit: press@t-press.cz.