Orange and Vodafone make 3G network sharing pact

Orange and Vodafone Spain have announced that they have forged an agreement to share 3G infrastructure in towns with fewer than 25,000 people in 19 provinces across the country. The agreement, which currently covers 1,000 base stations, will allow both operators to increase coverage by around 25%, while reducing the estimated total number of sites needed by around 40%. By the end of this year the number of shared base stations is expected to have risen to 1,500, covering rural parts of Alicante, Castellon, Valencia, Granada, Malaga, Seville, La Coruna, Pontevedra, Baleares, Ciudad Real, Toledo, Cuenca, Guadalajara, Barcelona, Madrid, Logrono, Navarra, Guipuzcoa and Vizcaya. Within four years the pair expect to share around 5,000 base stations.