Turkish 4G ‘to come into service by start of 2016’

ANKARA - Anadolu Agency

REUTERS Photo

Turkish fourth-generation (4G) telecom services are envisaged to be operational by the first day of 2016, Communications Minister Feridun Bilgin has said.

Speaking in an exclusive interview on April 14, Bilgin said GSM operators had been asked to ready their networks before the end of 2015.

The Information and Communications Technology Authority of Turkey (BTK) announced on April 10 the tender for 4G frequency bands is scheduled to be held on May 26.

Bilgin said the value of the 20 frequency packages in the tender was at least $2.43 billion and licenses would be valid until April 30, 2029.

4G telecom services enable GSM operators to broaden the scope of their offerings. It gives providers the ability to offer gaming services, high-definition mobile TV, video conferencing, 3D television and cloud computing by providing a high-speed internet connection to almost every kind of mobile device.