14 DAY TRIAL // T-Mobile and 3 are now negotiating in order to share their 3G networks and boost profits. This should considerably increase the coverage and also reduce costs for the two companies.
The two companies are now only in early stages of discussions for making the joint network possible. Rene Obermann, CEO of Deutsch Telekom (German T-Mobile), hinted at network consolidation last month, when it described it as "a perfectly logical and sensible move".
The partnership will considerably impact UK's telecom market, when it comes to operators and subscribers as well. This should help the two companies surpass all other competitors on the market and considerably expand their coverage. At this time, 3 and T-Mobile have 90 and 85 percent population coverage respectively. If the deal goes through, it would mean a reach of 98 percent for both of them. That should raise the two companies at a level way ahead of that of their competitors.
This is not the first time when UK networks express their intentions of working together. Back in February, Vodafone and Orange announced a similar plan, although it has failed to take shape even up to this point. All these intentions of partnering with other companies have left out O2, as this operator showed no efforts towards this possibility. They must have been too busy negotiating with Apple the terms of their iPhone support and missed on other opportunities.
With such a coverage, reaching almost all the UK handset users, the two companies can even consider further possibilities. This could mean the beginning of bringing HSDPA, also known as Superfast 3G or Turbo 3G in the UK. With this technology, the two companies would be able to offer their subscribers services that none of them could bring alone. The terms of this partnering are being discussed at this time, looking to settle on convenient terms for both companies.