Sunrise is planning to axe its 2G network by the end of next year as it looks to expand its LTE network, while Bouygues and SFR have also been granted permission to refarm spectrum.

Worldwide mobile data traffic is set to grow eightfold to hit 71 billion GB per month in 2022 as European smartphone users lag in usage behind North American counterparts.

EE has used millimetre wave backhaul to connect one of its air-masts, which the mobile operator hopes to use to connect areas in emergency situations.

Cellular connectivity will account for a fifth of all internet traffic by 2021, Cisco has predicted, with IoT devices accounting for more than half of connected devices by early next decade.

Turkcell has pushed forward with its 5G plans in a live FDD Massive MIMO test that it claims boosted throughput fivefold compared to traditional LTE configurations.

Vodafone Germany has rolled out 500MBps speeds to nine cities in a 4.5G project that combines three spectrum bands.

EE has hit speeds of 429MBps on its live network through a combination of dual-carrier aggregation, 4x4 MIMO and 256QAM.

Belgium's BASE is to research Internet of Things, LTE-Advanced and 5G technologies after signing a partnership agreement with ZTE.

LTE will increase from 30 percent of mobile subscriptions globally today to 50 percent by 2024 as advanced versions of the technology take off, new projections suggest.

Telenor has rolled out LTE-A networks in seven locations across Serbia to support burgeoning data traffic from video and social media.

Telia has started rolling out 4.5G technology to five cities across Lithuania, offering speeds of up to 500MBps to consumers with compatible handsets.

Telia Finland has trialled a new network that prioritises emergency public safety communications in times of busy LTE use.

Elisa has pipped Finnish rivals Telia and DNA to be crowned the fastest network in the market for download throughput, a new report has claimed.

Qualcomm is aiming to bring longer battery life and faster LTE speeds to mid-tier smartphones with its new Snapdragon 660 and 630 chipsets.

Swisscom has enabled four-band carrier aggregation on its live network in one of its retail stores in Zurich, offering speeds of more than 800MBps.

LTE-Advanced networks could be used to support drones in the entertainment, construction, delivery and construction industries, Qualcomm has claimed after extensive tests of the technology.

Monaco Telecom has commercially launched download speeds of up to 1GBps through its 4G network.

Swiss Internet of Things chipset maker u-blox has built and certified what it claims is the world's smallest LTE-M module.

Vodafone Turkey and Turkcell have held separate spectrum sharing demonstrations with Huawei, as they look to boost network efficiency.

UK operators have made "big strides" in improving LTE availability across the country, new research has found, as telcos made inroads in improving network quality.