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lifecell announced the expansion of the list of countries in which 5G is available to its subscribers. Now this list includes 47 countries.
In which countries does lifecell operate 5G in roaming
Since May 2023, lifecell subscribers have access to 5G Internet in roaming – at the start the service was offered in Bulgaria, Austria, Finland and the Dominican Republic, and now the operator provides this opportunity for lifecell roamers in 47 countries (if the smartphone supports this standard).
- Australia
- Austria
- Argentina
- Belgium
- Bulgaria
- UK
- Hong Kong
- Greece
- Denmark
- Dominican Republic
- Estonia
- Israel
- Iceland
- Spain
- Italy
- Kazakhstan
- Canada
- Qatar
- China
- Cyprus
- Kuwait
- Latvia
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- Liechtenstein
- Malta
- Netherlands
- Germany
- Norway
- United Arab Emirates
- Oman
- Portugal
- Romania
- Saudi Arabia
- Singapore
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- Taiwan
- Thailand
- Türkiye
- Hungary
- Finland
- France
- Croatia
- Czech Republic
- Switzerland
- Sweden
lifecell also shared some statistics on the use of 5G service in roaming:
- Since May 2023, almost 200 thousand people have used it.
- Top 5 countries where the most lifecell subscribers use 5G – Germany, Romania, Czech Republic, Spain and Turkey.
- The largest number of GB per 5G subscriber is in Germany – about 14 GB, followed by Turkey with almost 10 GB, and the third is the Netherlands with 9 GB.
The list of the most popular smartphones on which lifecell subscribers use 5G deserves special attention – iPhone 14 Pro Max, iPhone 13, iPhone 13 Pro Max, iPhone 12 Pro Max, iPhone 12, iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 13 Pro , iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, iPhone 14. Among Android users, the most popular 5G model is the Galaxy A53.
lifecell directly admits that these fairly high rates of mobile Internet consumption in roaming are influenced, among other things, by the ability to use gigabytes under the “Gigabytes Without Borders” promotion within the “home” tariff without additional surcharges.
Sales of lifecell, European roaming at home rates and prospects for 5G in Ukraine
It remains to remember a few more important points. As for lifecell, since December 2023, the third largest Ukrainian mobile operator by number of subscribers has been in the final stage of selling NJJ Capital to French billionaire Xavier Niel – the deal is expected to be closed before September 2024 (the delay is due to the arrest of the share of corporate rights indirectly owned by sanctioned Russian businessmen Fridman and Kosogov), and then it is quite likely that it will merge with Datagroup and Volia.
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In February, the Council supported the bill on a single roaming zone with the EU, and Ukraine became one step closer to the EU free roaming zone on a permanent basis. When the changes are finally approved, Ukrainians while traveling in Europe will be able to make calls and use mobile Internet at home rates without replacing the SIM card or additional surcharges. Now free roaming for Ukrainians in the European Union is valid thanks to a separate agreement between Ukrainian and European operators.
As for the timing of the full launch of 5G in Ukraine, there are none yet (not even tentative). Briefly: do not expect the fifth generation in the next few years, despite the pilot launch of 5G in Ukraine in 2024 announced by the head of the Ministry of Digital Development in September 2023 and the recent tests of 5G base stations by Kyivstar specialists, which lifecell CEO Ismet Yazici called a PR move in a recent interview with Forbes.
Ukrainian operators with Ericsson and other major manufacturers of telecommunications equipment, as part of their preparation, long before the war, deployed 5G demo segments and tested equipment (1, 2, 3). We can also mention the postponement of the 5G tender due to lack of government funding and other obstacles even before the full-scale Russian invasion.
Considering the scale of destruction of Ukraine’s telecom infrastructure as a result of Russian aggression, the lack of 4G coverage and uninterrupted communications in a significant part of Ukraine, the deployment of full-fledged 5G networks in Ukraine will not become a priority after the victory and remains a distant prospect. Transition to 5G — this is a huge investment, the need to update legislation, harmonize it with EU standards, including equipment safety, free up radio frequency resources for 5G communications, as well as certify equipment for infrastructure development. There is not a single manufacturer of 5G equipment in Ukraine, and purchasing it for foreign currency from Chinese suppliers, taking into account current realities, does not look rational. So maybe it’s better to skip that 5G and immediately implement 6G, as Dmitry Shymkiv once proposed to do with 4G.
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