Vodafone to roll out 4G services by summer 2013

Vodafone has said it will roll out its fourth generation data services in Ireland by next summer.

Earlier this month, the country's mobile phone operators bought blocks of spectrum that were freed up by the switching-off of the old analogue TV signal.

Vodafone said it secured the largest allocation of spectrum in the market and that it will therefore be first to offer customers 4G.

CEO of Vodafone Ireland Jeroen Hoencamp said: "We will see 4G probably at the end of the first half of next year and then roll out very fast (by summer 2013)."