ORANGE Slovensko, one of three mobile operators in Slovakia, returned a CDMA mobile network licence to the state after lower-than-expected interest among the public, the Sme daily reported on February 2.
Over the past four years, the mobile operator began offering high-speed mobile internet access via the CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) network at a frequency of 870 MHz to remote municipalities with problematic internet access. Due to low availability of devices capable of running on this network, the operator returned the 20-year licence, for which it paid €1.3 million, to the state.
When returning the licence, Orange admitted that clients had not been interested in the service. The operator registered only a few dozen clients in two municipalities, Hrochoť and Banská Bystrica.