French cellcos agree a 4G deal with Paris officials

France’s four mobile operators have moved a step closer to being able to set up 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) networks in the capital city, Paris. An agreement has been reached between city authorities and Orange, SFR, Bouygues Telecom and Free Mobile over the deployment of LTE antennas, putting an end to months of negotiations amid protests from environmental campaigners. New exposure levels have been set for 4G signals, which will impose a new threshold of seven volts per metre for LTE transmissions in enclosed spaces, an increase on the previous maximum of two volts per metre. A level of five volts per metre will be allowed for 2G and 3G transmissions. The city has also agreed to allow LTE towers to be sited on around 200 municipal buildings, according to a report from newspaper La Tribune. The plans must now pass a vote by the municipal council in mid-October. It had been feared that Paris would be the last French city to receive 4G mobile broadband services if operators could not agree a deal with local authorities.