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Ireland is to get blanket 4G mobile broadband coverage in a new twist to the rural broadband controversy.
Eir is to invest € 150m in rolling out 4G mobile broadband that will cover 99pc of Ireland's geographical territory within two years.
This is the first time that a mobile operator has offered universal land coverage.
Where the signal is strong enough, 4G can be used for home broadband.
Speeds of up to 100 megabits per second are currently possible.
Eir also says that at the same time it will also improve the network to be 5G-ready in anticipation of faster mobile broadband standards being introduced next year.
Up to now, mobile operators have left to the majority of the population in cities and large towns, leaving ample areas of the country with poor, slow signals.
National Broadband Plan (NBP), which is awaiting a report from the auditor Peter Smyth this week to determine whether it can proceed.
A series of government leaks in the media has made it possible to rethink its commitment to invest taxpayers' money in rural broadband infrastructure.
The State-subsidized NBP tender would facilitate a network roll-out to 540,000 rural homes and businesses, giving the fastest possible broadband speeds.
However, it has been questioned by Denis Naughten, and the head of the NBP bidding consortium, David McCourt, who is interfered with due process.
The Eir Investment is the beginning of a 1 billion overhaul of the company's entire network, which was sparked by a new owner, the billionaire French telecoms magnate, Xavier Niel.
Mr Niel has stated that his two priorities in reforming are to expand the company's mobile network around the country and upgrade its infrastructure.
The nationwide 4G expansion will involve hundreds of new masks being put into place over two years.
The chief executive of Eir, Carolan Lennon, has made the most of the country.
She said: "This investment in our mobile network is part of an overall $ 1bn capital investment program over the next five years." The program will also see an expansion of our high-speed fiber-to-the-home roll-out to deliver broadband speeds of up to 1,000Mbps to a further 1.4 million homes and businesses across the country. "
Irish Independent
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