Vodafone could claim bragging rights on 5G, sources suggest

Tuesday, 30 July 2019

Vodafone New Zealand may announce the country's first 5G mobile network on Thursday, to coincide with Infratil and Canadian investor Brookfield taking ownership of the company, sources say.

That is despite comments from former boss Russell Stanners last year that it was in no rush to launch 5G ahead of its rivals.

Vodafone declined to comment on the speculation, but Spark and 2degrees said it would not come as a surprise if Vodafone did move to grab 5G bragging rights.

Vodafone NZ has said its 'number one priority' is improving customer service, amid complaints from some customers about service levels.

But Vodafone has an opportunity to steal a march on its rivals in 5G as it already owns some radio spectrum in the key 3.5GHz band that is best supported by 5G devices makers.

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Those rights are due to expire in November 2022, before which the spectrum band is due to be repackaged and reauctioned.

Spark has access to some spectrum in the 3.5GHz band for 5G trials, but is not allowed to use that for a commercial service.

Spark has repeatedly stressed it wants to launch a 5G service by July next year, but spokesman Andrew Pirie admitted that target could be complicated by an expected delay to the 3.5GHz auction, which Communications Minister Kris Faafoi has acknowledged may not now be concluded until towards the end of next year.

Communications Minister Kris Faafoi has said he hopes to have 5G radio spectrum rights beyond 2022 auctioned by the end of next year.

The delay comes amidst consultations with iwi over a Waitangi Tribunal claim.

But Pirie noted that the Government was exploring ways to provide 'early access options for a limited amount of spectrum on a short-term basis' with the intention of freeing-up some spectrum for some purposes ahead of the auction date.

'If we were able to participate in that process, that would open the way for us to have 5G services up in the timeline we have indicated, if not sooner,' he said.

2degrees chief executive Mark Aue suggested the lines between a 'real' 5G launch, a trial and 'marketing' could be blurred.

2degrees was also 'absolutely committed' to evolving its network from 4G to 5G technology, but customers were not asking about 5G at the moment, he said.

'Different providers have different agendas, whether that is real 5G or not. When you look at the enhancements that are being made to 4G, consumers are going to get a significant benefit from that which will take care of their needs for probably years to come.'

Vodafone Group began selling 5G services in 15 cities in Britain at the start of the month, marketing the benefits as faster speeds, greater network capacity and lower lag.

In Britain, it said 5G would work at average speeds of 150-200 megabits per second and provide peak speeds of more than 1Gbps 'which means you'll be able to download a full HD film in around 3 minutes, compared to over 15 minutes on 4G'.