Spanish operators plan to shut down the 3G network before the 2G network

Everything seems to indicate that the mobile phone GSM, 2G, will have a longer life in our country than the later UMTS, 3G technology. Although the first was born in 1994, on bands of 900 and 1,800 MHz, to offer call and SMS services, the second began operating in 2002, on 900 and 1,200 MHz bands, to cover communication through mobile data.However, today, the oldest network It has been reused and operators have found in the frequencies of 2G a suitable solution for communication between machines, M2M (machine to machine). This evolution will allow the 2G to have more validity than the 3G network.

As published by 'The Economist' in its paper edition, the characteristics and features that distinguish the low frequency bands of GSM are very effective in covering large areas of land and difficult to access with few base stations. Thus, 2G has now become a magnificent resource for this environment that promises to be dominated by Smart Cities and the Internet of Things (IoT).

the 3g network will go down in history before the 2G network

In fact, the main Spanish operators have explained through this economic newspaper that 2G will shut down much later than 3G. How will these networks evolve? The forecasts indicate that UMTS connections will be absorbed by what is now known as 4G, while 2G networks will stay longer to provide connectivity between objects s, as well as to provide voice services to Users with older terminals.

However, GSM networks will survive for their new function.Today, they barely perform the function for which they were created.Users who still talk on the phone through 2G technology are very few and the result percentage of operating terminals that only support the frequencies of 900 MHz.In fact, the operators are committed to packet voice and data through 4G networks, which already cover 95 percent of the Spanish population. All this allows users to add added services and better sound quality (VolTE).

When will we say goodbye to these networks? According to 'El Economista', the extinction of 2G will arise from 2025, which is almost five years after the blackout of the 3G network, planned in Europe for 2020.

The situation in other countries

However, the situation in other countries is very different with respect to 2G, which has begun to go down in history a in some corners of the world.For example, last January 1 AT&amp ; T proceeded to shut down its 2G networks in United States , while in Mexico it will remain operational because it is still used by a considerable number of customers.

Also, in Japan and South Korea most of these lines have already been disconnected.For its part, Singapore will say goodbye to GSM starting next April 1 because operators of that country, M1, Singtel Mobile and StarHub Mobile, have agreed to shut down that network.

This issue is on the discussion table in United Kingdom and Australia .In fact, in the latter country, Telstra has been convinced of the convenience of an impending 2G blackout.

Source: 'El Economista', paper edition Monday, January 30, 2017