The UK Government has signed a deal with four mobile networks to improve mobile coverage across the country, in particular ‘partial not-spots’.
Telecom operators including EE, O2, Three and Vodafone will provide voice and text coverage to 90% of the country by 2017 and will mainly focus upon area affected by patchy coverage, according to the UK Government.
Britain’s mobile phone networks are planning to spend £5bn to improve basic service coverage in rural areas where consumers are reportedly deprived of strong signal.
The firms rejected the government’s option for systems to allow customers of one network to use another network if their supplier wasn’t available.
UK culture secretary Sajid Javid said: "I am pleased to have secured a legally binding deal with the four mobile networks."
"Too many parts of the UK regularly suffer from poor mobile coverage leaving them unable to make calls or send texts.
"Government and businesses have been clear about the importance of mobile connectivity, and improved coverage, so this legally binding agreement will give the UK the world-class mobile phone coverage it needs and deserves. The £5bn investment from the mobile networks in the UK’s infrastructure will help drive this Government’s long-term economic plan."
Derek McManus, Chief Operating Officer of O2, said: "A partnership between government and the mobile operators is required to maximise coverage across the UK, so this agreement is a good outcome for our customers. It will support investment in our network, while ensuring that strong competition remains between the different networks."
