Arqiva acquires additional 28GHz spectrum licence in London

UK, London, 04 July 2017: Arqiva, the leading UK communications infrastructure company, has today announced its acquisition of an additional 28GHz spectrum licence from intelligent managed services provider, Luminet.

The Region A licence for 2x 112MHz covers Central and Greater London and bolsters Arqiva's existing nationwide spectrum band ownership.

The 28GHz spectrum band is the standard band used for 5G connectivity trials in the USA, Japan and South Korea focused on Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) offering promise for future 5G implementations in the UK.

The next key milestone in 5G deployment will be March 2018 when the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) completes Release 15. This will be the first standardisation of 5G, paving the way for FWA to be the first commercial release of 5G technology.

This commercialisation of 5G standards will allow vendors and operators to deploy at scale an ecosystem that spans from chip-set to network equipment on a global basis, therefore driving further economies of scale.

Nicolas Ott, Managing Director of Telecoms and M2M at Arqiva, commented:

5G connectivity is a highly debated topic, especially with regards to what it will deliver and by when. However, the FWA component is set for a head start thanks to the drive from major global fixed line and mobile operators as both a substitute and a companion to traditional fibre services. 3GPP certification is critical to achieving global acceptance.

5G FWA is an exciting opportunity to deliver true ultrafast broadband above 500Mbps to millions of households; this is especially relevant in the UK where so few households are connected by fibre to the home (FTTH) or fibre to the cabinet (FTTC). FWA has the ability to become a truly alternative technology to deliver fibre-like services.

In purchasing this additional licence we are able to further our ambitions in this area, standing ourselves in good stead to deliver a compelling 5G FWA wholesale service to UK mobile and fixed operators across the country, and with even more capacity in Greater London.

Arqiva is set to conduct the UK's first 5G FWA field trial, in partnership with Samsung, in London this summer. Using the 28GHz band, the trial will explore the possibilities of ultra-fast, high bandwidth connectivity via wireless technology rather than conventional wired services.

Sasha Williamson, CEO, Luminet, added:

The advent of 5G is set to be one of the most exciting digital developments of the decade, and we will be following Arqiva's trial with interest.

Divesting the spectrum was a strategic business decision for Luminet as we continue to build on our existing 400Sqkm London network and enhance our focus on wholesale for our intelligent GB connectivity and computing services.

- ENDS -

About Arqiva:

Arqiva is a leading UK communications infrastructure and media services provider dedicated to connecting people wherever they are through the delivery of TV, radio, mobile and the Internet of Things (IoT). We are an independent provider of telecom towers, with circa 8,000 active sites across Great Britain, and the only supplier of national terrestrial television and radio broadcasting services in the UK. Our advanced networks support the exponential growth of connected devices and the ever-increasing demand for data from smartphones to tablets, connected TVs, smart meters, cars and medical devices.

Customers include major UK and international broadcasters such as the BBC, ITV, Sky Plc., Turner Broadcasting, the independent radio groups, major telco providers including the UKs four mobile network operators and retail, leisure, energy and water companies.

For more information, news and insights from Arqiva, please visit the website at: www.arqiva.com

About Luminet

Luminet is the intelligent managed services provider, offering businesses Connectivity, Computing and Intelligent services and solutions. Luminet has a peer-to-peer relationship with its customers and has the UK's leading NPS customer satisfaction score of 42 in telecoms and technology. Combining a true customer-centric organisation with strong values, culture and capability together with technical excellence and best-value makes Luminet a partner of choice for business, supported by industry-leading SLAs, and ISO 9001 and ISO 27001 certifications.

For more information about Luminet please visit the website at: http://luminet.co.uk/

For more information contact:

Rebecca Mulgrave

WE Communications for Arqiva

+44 (0)20 7632 3856

rmulgrave@we-worldwide.com

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