Telkom South Africa has announced that it could switch off its 2G network in the next twelve months, TechCentral writes. Telkom Group CEO Sipho Maseko said the company has only 250,000 2G-only customers left on its network out of a base of more than 6.5 million. Maseko said he is keen to switch off the 2G network as soon as possible so that the spectrum can be redeployed for 3G and 4G/LTE services: ‘My intention is to use the next 12 months to migrate and then optimise the network for 3G and 4G.’ He said the recently signed roaming agreement with Vodacom, which covers 2G, 3G and 4G/LTE, could even accelerate the switch-off of Telkom’s 2G network as its last remaining 2G-only customers could roam on Vodacom’s network instead.
Telkom has also begun work on 5G and has started identifying sites for possible rollout. He said the company is doing laboratory testing of 5G technology and intends to hold a demonstration of its capabilities soon.