Bharti Airtel deploys 11.2MHz spectrum in 1800 band across Karnataka

Bharti Airtel Monday said it has deployed an additional 11.2MHz spectrum in the 1800MHz band along with network software tools across Karnataka to bolster high-speed data capacity.

These network software tools include pre-5G Massive MIMO, 4G Advanced, and Carrier Aggregation to step up high-speed network capacity and coverage, according to an official statement.

Earlier today, Airtel deployed 5MHz spectrum in the 1800 band across Tamil Nadu to bolster capacity. It had acquired large blocks of 1800MHz and 900MHz spectrum for Tamil Nadu during the spectrum auctions conducted recently.

To recall, Airtel had acquired the 11.2MHz spectrum for Karnataka during the auctions.

With its latest spectrum purchase, Airtel said it has a spectrum holding of 68.8MHz in Karnataka, while the diverse spectrum holdings across 2300MHz, 2100MHz, 1800MHz, and 900MHz band makes it well-positioned for 5G.

“We are obsessed with delivering a world-class service experience to our customers and continue to invest aggressively in the new spectrum and network upgrades at a time when our customers need it the most. Airtel now has the largest spectrum bank in Karnataka and our future-ready network is well-positioned to meet the surging demand for high-speed data,” said Sharan Shetty, CEO – Karnataka, Bharti Airtel.

According to the Sunil Mittal-led telco, it has over 3.03 crore customers in Karnataka and its network covers 97.5% population of the state.