German mobile operator E-Plus, a subsidiary of Dutch telecoms group KPN, has announced it has doubled its subscriber base within the last five years to reach 20 million at the start of November. At 30 September 2010 the company posted a subscriber base of 19.899 million, of which 65.4% were on a pre-paid basis. The company said it will continue expanding its mobile internet network to work towards offering the country’s best data network by 2012.
In a separate but related story, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reports that E-Plus hopes to use 900MHz frequencies for expanding its UMTS network in rural municipalities in Pfalz, Mecklenburg and Uckermark. The company said the expansion would enable it to offer mobile broadband services at HSPA+ speeds to the households in these areas. The expansion requires approval from the Federal Network Agency (FNA), however, as 900MHz frequencies are reserved for the provision of GSM services and not for UMTS.