As smartphones become more prevalent, mobile internet usage will take over home internet connections. This is likely to happen much faster in Iran than previously thought with the introduction of 4G mobile internet, according to MTN-Irancell.
In a recent announcement, Iran's second largest operator by number of subscribers announced that mobile internet usage across the country is rising at a faster rate than they previously anticipated.
MTN-Irancell said it has launched 4G LTE services in Bushehr Province and the city of Assalouyeh, the company PR department reported on Sunday.
In a ceremony attended by Irancell's senior managers 10 southern districts including Khormoj, Siraf, Tol-e Ashki, Bord Khun, Nazar Aqa, Nakhl Taqi, and Borazjan districs as well as Bushehr and Asalouyeh are now covered by 3G and 4G LTE.
According to MTN-Irancell top executive, Reza Mansouri, after the company obtained the upgrade license for 3G and 4G mobile networks, the company stepped up efforts to increase its internet speed in the south of the country.
"For the time being, more than 237 cities and villages in all 31 provinces enjoy MTN Irancell 3G services, and more than 56 cities have access to 4G service, which is rapidly growing," Mansouri added.
He further stated that data usage through the months of February and March 2015 surpassed 5,000 terabytes, showing a growth of over 3 times in the cities using the 4G internet services. He added that per megabyte internet costs have been reduced in tandem with the rise in mobile internet usage.
The executive added that "data transfer speeds have also increased." Data transfer speeds of Irancell's 4G LTE system are "almost 12 times faster than the 3G and roughly 120 times the speed of Edge."
On data transfer speed in Bushehr Province ha said, "The monthly data usage in Bushehr during the months of February and March surpassed 46TB. The usage amount in Bushehr has increased by 70% compared to the period prior to launch of 3G and 4G.
Irancell is pushing its 4G internet services faster than its main competitor MCI (Hamra-e-Aval) who is still in the process of hiring technicians to upgrade its infrastructure. The jointly owned South African company has an advantage over its main rival due to borrowing of technology and services from its African co-owner.
Irancell may be leading for now, however in recent telecoms event, ADSL provider, Shatel stated it is planning to move into the 4G LTE market in the coming months. If given the go-ahead by the telecommunications ministry, Iranians are likely to see many more players in the market in this Iranian year, which started March 21.
