Last week, Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan called for a jump from the country’s existing 3G technology direct to 5G mobile networks within two years, skipping 4G entirely.
Turkey is due to hold a 4G tender process in May 2015, with national operator Turkcell well into preparations for this, but Erdogan allegedly said today that the country could not “lose time” with the technology.
“Cancelling the tender is being discussed now. We are evaluating…it will become clear soon,” Nurettin Canikli, customs and trade minister, told local reporters.
“The president’s remarks were meant to be instructions. We should pay attention to what he says.”
Turkish officials have previously stated that 4G services will be commercially available from Q1 2016.
