Telcos achieve nationwide outdoor 4G coverage ahead of schedule

SINGAPORE — All three telcos here have achieved significant nationwide outdoor 4G coverage, said a survey conducted by the Infocomm Development Authority (IDA) — the results of which will help set the standards in the Quality of Service framework for 4G services.

The islandwide survey gathered about 200,000 readings at town centres, outdoor recreational parks and major and small roads.

Its results found Singtel ahead of the pack, with a nationwide outdoor coverage of 99.41 per cent, followed by M1 at 99.04 per cent and StarHub at 98.95 per cent.

This placed the three telcos approximately 18 months ahead of the June 30, 2016, deadline the IDA had set for nationwide outdoor 4G service coverage.

However, the regulator today (Feb 13) flagged mobile service coverage in underground road and train tunnels as an area that required improvement.

Telco operators are required to provide nationwide coverage for underground roads and tunnels by June 30, 2018.

The IDA said StarHub has rolled out its network to cover most of these, but the other two telcos have done so for only two and four underground roads and tunnels, respectively.

“The IDA recognises that 4G services are available at most outdoor areas, but service coverage at road and train tunnels can be improved. The IDA urges the MNOs (mobile network operators) to continue to enhance their network and improve service quality to end users,” said an IDA spokesman.

IDA deputy chief executive Leong Keng Thai added that 4G subscription rates are increasing every month and therefore, consumers expect these services to be “widely and readily” available across the country. In response, the telcos said they would take into account the survey findings.

M1 noted that its 4G coverage was available in the Central Expressway tunnels and said it would continue to roll out coverage progressively across the remaining tunnels.

“Mobile coverage is constantly evolving as we continually invest in our network to further enhance our customers’ experience,” said an M1 spokesperson.

Separately, the IDA gave an update on another study it had conducted to find out if it was necessary for peering to be cost-free here.

Peering allows Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to exchange data or traffic with one another directly without having to pay a third party to carry that traffic across the Internet for them, bypassing any congestion as a result.

Currently, some of the newer and smaller ISPs rout their traffic through third-party servers overseas because the larger ISPs are not willing to have a peering relationship with them.

This can result in slower connectivity for consumers.

Last year, the Ministry of Communications and Information said that peering might not improve connection speeds.

It noted that even without peering, Singapore’s broadband speeds are already among the fastest in the world.

With this latest study, the IDA concluded yesterday that regulatory intervention would not be needed.

“The market has also demonstrated that differences in traffic routing arrangements have not prevented smaller ISPs from competing aggressively by offering innovative and differentiated products targeted at specific user segments, such as higher speeds, lower latency and lower prices,” said the IDA in its statement.