Virgin Media - entering the spectrum race? Virgin Media is mulling over a possible bid in the UK 4G spectrum auction scheduled for later this year after testing 4G coverage at its Oxford Street store.
The news may come as a surprise to anyone who thought that Ofcom's upcoming auction was a four-horse race, with Branson's phone arm considering joining O2, Everything Everywhere, Vodafone and Three in the fray.
It's not a definite though, with a spokesperson for the network saying, ""Ofcom were quite explicit about encouraging new entrants into the market, which is an encouraging sign.
"They are looking at making the sort of spectrum that we would look to use available, not just for the big mobile operators. So there is potential here for the market to open up."
Trials and tribulationsVirgin's trials are taking place at its flagship store, where it hooked a small cell up to the shop's broadband and tested the connection over a 4G dongle.
Following these low-key tests, the network hopes to expand the trail out to consumers soon too, although the current trials only look at coverage rather than actually using applications over the connection.
Virgin Media's mobile coverage has always been provided by other networks – originally T-Mobile and now Orange too under the Everything Everywhere deal – making it a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO), but it could become a fully-fledged network if it does decide to bid on 4G spectrum come the end of the year.
From IT Pro Tags: 4G, Virgin Media, smartphones, LTE, spectrumTweetreddit!StumbleuponComment on this article Your comments (1) Click to add a new commentdansus1. In-ta-westing.
Alert a moderator Tell us what you thinkYou need to Log in or register to post comments By submitting this form you agree to our Terms of Use and so are legally responsible for anything you submit. DO NOT submit anything which may violate the Terms of Use or another person's rights including copyrighted or offensive materials.
Submit Explore News Mobile phonesVoIPOther phones Related News Motorola Droid Razr Maxx gives 8 hours of LTE battery lifeSmartphones and tablets now 50% of Samsung's profitsLG Optimus LTE hits one million salesLG Optimus LTE hits one million sales markResearch team developing smartphones that power themselves Related Reviews Samsung Epic 4G TouchSteelSeries Spectrum 5XBVirgin Media TiVo 
4G mobile broadband and LTE explained 4G promises faster data. But when will we get it in the UK?
Phones@TechRadarOur guide to the best new mobile phones:
LatestGalaxy NexusOrange San Francisco 2HTC TitanMoto RazrHTC RadarGalaxy NoteCurve 9360HTC ExplorerWave 3Sensation XEXperia Arc SCurve 9300Xperia Mini ProGalaxy YTop ratedGalaxy S2iPhone 4SNokia LumiaHTC Desire HDHTC SensationGalaxy AceiPhone 4Incredible SHTC WildfireGalaxy EuropaXperia MiniHTC Desire SHTC Wildfire SiPhone 3GSCompare tariffsSearch all dealsContractPAYGGalaxy S2iPhone 4SHTC SensationiPhone 4HTC Desire HDGalaxy SHTC Desire SGalaxy AceHTC Wildfire S
Plus
iPhone 5Mobile phone reviewsBest phonesBest Android phoneMore
20 best mobile phones in the world todayTop mobile phones compared: what phone is best for you?
Find a review
Best phones for music 2012Which are the top music phones around for sound?
Get more from TechRadar 20 best mobile phones in the world todayiPad 3 rumours: what you need to knowHands on: Motorola Droid 4 reviewiPhone 5 rumours: what you need to know12 best Blu-ray players in the UK 2012iPhone 4SSamsung Galaxy NexusNokia Lumia 800Amazon Kindle FireSamsung Galaxy NoteNikon V1HTC RadarNikon J1iPhone 3GSHTC SensationSamsung Galaxy AceHTC Wildfire S 
Latest mobile phones 2011: hottest handsets reviewedOur one stop spot for all our new mobile phone reviews
TechRadar PollHow much would you spend on 42" OLED TV?
£5,000+£4,000+£3,000+£2,000+£1,000+Under £1,000I don't want an OLED TVVote Results 
Best Android phone - which should you buy?Top 10 best Android phones compared
Where am I?Technology NewsTech newsApple newsMobile phone newsTablet newsTV newsCamera newsPC component newsPC newsLaptop newsInternet newsGadget newsGaming newsHome cinema newsHi-fi newsTechnology ReviewsDigital camera reviewsCamcorder reviewsMobile phone reviewsMP3 and iPod reviewsNetworking reviewsPC reviewsPC component reviewsLaptop reviewsTablet reviewsTV reviewsBlu-ray reviewsHi-fi reviewsTechRadarAbout usContact usSitemapReport this pageAccessibilityMedia enquiriesTerms and conditionsPrivacy policyAdvertising enquiriesJobsMore from TechRadarRegister & email newsletterFacebookTwitterYouTubeRSS feedsForumsPhone dealsSell your old mobileTechRadar Network3D RadarTap! magazineMacFormat magazinePC Format magazinePC Plus magazineLinux Format magazine
Copyright 2006 - 2011 Future Publishing Limited,
30 Monmouth Street, Bath, BA1 2BW, United Kingdom
England and Wales company registration number 2008885
No comments:
Post a Comment