According to the Government’s press release,  “Poor mobile phone coverage will be a thing of the past as the Government champions a £1 billion deal with the mobile phone industry to banish rural not-spots.

• Moves to cement plans to give high-quality 4G coverage to 95 per cent of the UK by 2025, meaning consumers will get good 4G signal on the go wherever they live, work or travel
• Digital Secretary Nicky Morgan supports deal with UK Mobile Network Operators to provide additional coverage to 280,000 homes and businesses and 16,000km of roads
• New plans for all operators to share phone masts to improve UK coverage is a world first

The move will bring 4G coverage to 95 per cent of the UK by 2025 and be a huge boost for consumers. More people in rural areas will benefit from the speed and efficiency of services on the go - from booking travel, shopping online or speaking to friends and family.

Digital Secretary Nicky Morgan is supportive of a £530 million proposal from the UK’s mobile network operators for a Shared Rural Network with the potential for it to be matched by £500 million investment from Government.

Full details here

Tech Radar reports that mobile operators in the UK could be fined as much as ten per cent of their annual turnover if they fail to honour new commitments to improve rural coverage

It comes after the Government announced £1 billion last week for the Shared Rural Network that aims to see operators offer 95 per cent 4G coverage by 2025.

Culture Secretary Nicky Morgan confirmed in a speech that operators could face fines for failing to deliver the promised coverage: ‘The mobile network operators will adopt new coverage obligations within their existing spectrum licence conditions to ensure that the outcomes will be delivered. If they cannot demonstrate that all reasonable efforts have been made to comply with the obligations, there are penalties for the operators, with a maximum fine of up to 10 per cent of annual turnover.’

Full article:

Tech Radar - Mobile firms face big fines for missing new rural coverage targets