Coverage from mobile communication systems in Sweden 2007 - PTS-ER-2007:12
28/03/2007
The National Post & Telecom Agency (PTS) has for the last three years reported to government about the status and evolvement of UMTS in Sweden. This task has since last year been extended to also cover other mobile communication systems. The agency has thus in this report chosen to describe NMT (Nordic Mobile Telephone) 450, CDMA2000 (Code Division Multiple Access) in the 450 MHz-band, GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) and UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System). Apart from just giving a broad description on the status today for these systems, the government has tasked PTS to give some suggestions on how to cover those areas (mostly remote) that do not have any coverage from any mobile communication systems.
The maps presented below show geographical coverage today as reported to the agency by the operators – percentage of population and in connection to requirements are shown in tables 1-3, found in section 2.1.
Coverage and how to improve it
Firstly one has to acknowledge the fact that Sweden has a very good coverage from mobile communication systems. There are though several areas in more remote parts of the regions north/west that does not have any kind of coverage – not even from analogue NMT450. It is in especially the southern parts that coverage can be found almost everywhere – even though it must be said that also in those parts of the country (due to different circumstances) some difficulties lingers on.
When it comes to UMTS, operators have reported that they by 1 December 2006 had 99 or even 100 percent coverage as of the licenses requirements of 8 860 000 people. Three of four GSM-operators reported 97-98 percent of total population 9 113 257 people by the end of 2006. One operator, Swefour, reported 2 percent. The operator that is right now building a nationwide network based on CDMA2000, Nordisk Mobiltelefoni AB, reported an estimated coverage of 89 percent of total population.
Apart from pure technological improvements within existing systems, such as EDGE, HSPA and alike, PTS firmly believes that in order to improve coverage (or in trying to cover the more remote areas as shown in maps below) a mix of regulatory issues such as technology- and service neutrality, refarming of 2G, identifying possibilities/needs for new licenses and state financing has to be utilised and investigated further.
Most of these issues are being processed within PTS in one way or another, and have been under quite some time (as for example new licenses mobile broadband 2,6GHz and 3,6-3,8GHz) – the issue regarding state financing is however still an open question. PTS however touched upon the subject in its report entitled “Broadband strategy for Sweden” (to be found on our webpage in English), and there concluded that continued state support and alternative financing models had to be further investigated to be able to reach the political goal of broadband for all by 2010.
One of the most important issues regarding involvement by the state within this sector (especially when it comes to collaborations between state and market) is that it must be closely connected to the idea of equal treatment and sound competition. A continued support by the state regarding financing should be included in this – and has been decided by the government. In that way it is not only plausible to expect an increased coverage in more rural areas, it is most probable.
An alternative way to finance state support would be to predestine the income from forth-coming auctions for mobile broadband for continued building of mobile communications systems in rural areas.