Three UK announced it will switch off the UK’s first 3G network at the end of 2024 and shift network’s investments to 4G and 5G business.

Three UK believes that turning off 3G network will allow the company to focus investments and spectrum resources on further improving 4G customer experience, while rolling out 5G network across the nation.

Three UK reported that 5G usage has exceeded 3G already, with the number of 5G devices on Three’s UK’s network quadrupling. Three predicts that 5G will account for 35 percent of data usage by the end of 2022.

Currently, Three covers 99 percent of the UK outdoor population with its combined 3G and 4G network and carries 28 percent of mobile data traffic in the country.

The average data usage per customer, per month is now 19GB as at December 2021, up 20 percent YoY.

David Hennessy, Chief Technology Officer at Three UK said: “As we roll out our ultrafast connectivity, by not only upgrading our existing 4G sites but building new 5G sites, we’ll be in a position to switch off our use of 3G across our network by the end of 2024.”