Tunisia: Tunisie Telecom wants to get rid of 3G to focus on 4G
June 29th 2022
According to the Tunisian telecommunications regulator, more than 80% of consumers have terminals compatible with 4G. The incumbent operator Tunisie Telecom wants to bet on broadband to strengthen its position on the national market in a context of accelerated digital transformation.
The public telecommunications operator Tunisie Telecom plans to get rid of third-generation (3G) mobile technology to better focus on 4G. This was announced by Sihem Tajouri, director of planning and radio engineering at Tunisie Telecom, on Tuesday, June 28, on the sidelines of the “Ericsson Day Tunisia” seminar.
According to Tunisie Telecom, this decision is motivated by the drop in 3G traffic due to the rapid migration of several users from 3G to 4G. In addition, a large number of terminals are connected to 2G, which means that the company does not plan to deactivate this technology for the moment. As part of this operation, Tunisie Telecom will first start by reframing the frequency bands used by 3G to use them for 4G. The company then plans to launch VoLTE (Voice over LTE) in order to transfer voice traffic from 3G to 4G.
This decision by the incumbent operator comes in a context marked by the acceleration of traffic and demand for broadband connectivity as well as new digital consumption patterns developed by populations during the Covid-19 pandemic. It comes a few weeks about two months after the company completed the national broadband coverage project for white areas. Started in 2017, the said project has made it possible to connect 94 white zones spread over 15 governorates.
In the latest edition of its ‘Mobility Report’, Swedish technology company Ericsson estimates that 4G subscriptions increased by around 54 million in 2021, while 2G and 3G declined, in the Middle East region and North Africa (MENA). Data traffic is expected to continue to increase as the transition to 4G networks continues, coupled with the availability of 4G devices and more affordable data plans.
Investment in 4G should enable Tunisie Telecom to improve its performance in terms of broadband. This will drive subscription growth and, in turn, improved revenue.
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