French telcos spend 3b euros to plug network gaps

Paris

FRANCE'S mobile telephone operators will spend more than three billion euros (S$4.86 billion) rolling out a 4G network to ensure that there are no coverage gaps by 2020, a government minister said.

Each of the major operators would install 5,000 masts and antennas, and jointly ensure network coverage along 30,000 km of rail tracks, Julien Denormandie, junior minister for territorial cohesion, told the Journal du Dimanche. The finance ministry later confirmed these details.