The Finnish mobile operator has partnered with Ericsson for deployment of the spectrum, which was repurposed from television by the Communications Regulator Authority.
DNA’s 4G network already covers 99% of the Finnish population, but the 2x10 MHz of 700MHz spectrum, which cost DNA €22 million, will be deployed in sparsely populated areas.
Tommy Olenius, SVP technology at DNA, says: "According to Tefficient, nearly 10 gigabytes of data per month per subscription were transmitted on the average in our network already in Q1-Q3 2016, which is higher than anywhere else in the world. After that, data traffic has continued to grow.
“With 700 MHz frequency band we will expand our 4G network capacity especially in the thinly-populated and rural areas. This is how we can guarantee faster and higher-quality services for all our customers regardless of their location and ever growing use of mobile data.”
DNA has selected Ericsson Radio System for the deployment. The Swedish vendor’s technology will also include frequency bands which can scale for 5G through multi-standard, multi-band and multi-layer technology.
Olli Sirkka, country manager, Ericsson Finland, says: "Mobile broadband is of particular importance in a mostly-rural country like Finland. The Finnish regulatory authorities have made a far-reaching decision to enable outstanding connectivity in the Finnish society when granting the 700 MHz spectrum for mobile broadband usage.
“The Ericsson Radio System technology chosen by DNA perfectly fits the requirements where widest possible coverage and high data rates are essential."
