Other providers will have to wait until next year for the service

Everything Everywhere gets 4G green light

Telecoms regulator Ofcom has granted Everything Everywhere permission to launch its 4G mobile services.

The company, which owns both the Orange and T-Mobile networks, will be allowed to offer the service from September 11th using its existing bandwidth.

Ofcom plans to offer 4G bandwidth to other providers next year.

The decision means UK users will have access to 4G services much earlier than previously anticipated.

Everything Everywhere has welcomed the decision, stating it is "great news for the UK".

"4G will drive investment, employment and innovation and we look forward to making it available later this year, delivering superfast mobile broadband to the UK," the company stated.

However, rival mobile operators Vodafone and O2 have expressed their disappointment at the move.

"The regulator has shown a careless disregard for the best interests of consumers, businesses and the wider economy through its refusal to properly regard the competitive distortion created by allowing one operator to run services before the ground has been laid for a fully competitive 4G market," a Vodafone spokesperson told the BBC.

Ofcom has stated that prohibiting Everything Everywhere from launching its 4G services would be "to the detriment of consumers".

Other providers will be able to bid for 4G bandwidth early next year as Ofcom begins to auctions it off.

Already available in countries including the USA and India, 4G promises five-times the speed of 3G technology and allows users to download and surf data much faster.

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