Vodafone 4G Now Reaches 23 Million Australians

Vodafone has increased its 4G network by more than 20 per cent to now reach 95 per cent of Australians. This puts it in second place for 4G coverage in Australia, behind Telstra 4G at 96 per cent of the population and ahead of Optus 4G at 92 per cent of the population.

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Vodafone achieved this by converting its entire holding of 850 MHz spectrum. Low-band spectrum, known as L850, provides higher quality indoor mobile coverage as the lower frequency signal penetrates buildings more effectively than higher frequency signals. This works alongside the 1800 MHz spectrum, with “capable devices” aggregating the two.

“We have spent billions of dollars over recent years to build a high performing 4G network throughout Australia for our customers. Now available in more places, our 4G network is faster and more resilient than ever before,” said Benoit Hanssen, Chief Technology Officer at Vodafone.

“We are confident our network delivers a fantastic 4G experience for customers, and we’re willing to guarantee it by offering Australia’s only Network Happiness Guarantee. This means that if you sign up to a plan and you’re not happy in the first 30 days, you can cancel your contract and only pay for what you’ve used.”

In addition to expanding its 4G coverage, Vodafone has also doubled the capacity of its 4G low band network in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Canberra and Hobart. This follows an 84 per cent increase in data usage on the network in 2015 compared to the previous year.

“Our customers’ mobile data usage continues to explode, largely driven by video traffic. To ensure we stay ahead of customer demand, we have doubled our low-band 4G capacity in metropolitan areas, and we will continue to repurpose our spectrum assets when needed,” said Mr Hanssen.

In an aim to improve service in the area, in recent months Vodafone has allocated 2100 MHz spectrum to 4G in Cairns and the Sunshine Coast.


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