Personal activates 3.5GHz 5G network, report says

Telecom Argentina (Personal) has reportedly switched on 5G Standalone (SA) services – one month after successfully bidding on 3.5GHz spectrum in the country’s 5G auction. The unverified report by TeleSemana notes that the network has gone live in the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires (Ciudad Autonoma de Buenos Aires, CABA) and the Area Metropolitana Buenos Aires (AMBA).

While the telco has yet to issue a press release confirming the launch, a promotional video posted on YouTube yesterday (28 November) suggests that Personal has deployed 34 5G SA cell sites to complement its existing 5G network, which re-farms existing 4G frequencies via a Dynamic Spectrum Sharing (DSS) configuration. That network comprises 240 cell sites.

According to TeleGeography’s GlobalComms Database, Personal paid USD350.026 million for a 100MHz spectrum block in the 3400MHz-3500MHz band in October’s auction. Claro also acquired a 100MHz block of 5G spectrum, while Movistar bid on a 50MHz allocation.