In order to provide increasingly powerful 4G and 5G mobile communications, operator Tele2 completely switched off the obsolete third generation or 3G technology on the night of Wednesday, March 5.
Work on this started last year, with regions gradually being switched off. The last 3G base stations were in Rīga, Pārdaugava and Marupe municipality. In total, more than 70 base stations still in operation ceased to operate on Wednesday night.
4G and 5G networks will be provided to customers in the future. But those who use their mobile phones only for calls and do not use the mobile internet will be able to continue using their phones, as calls will be provided on the 2G network.
"3G is an outdated technology. It is worldwide that operators are phasing out this technology as well. Latvia is no exception and neither is Tele2. This closure of 3G technology will not affect customers in any way. Those customers who have 3G SIM cards or are not sure what is in their smart devices can go to the Tele2 website or to Tele2 customer centers," said Oskars Fīrmanis, Tele2 spokesperson.
So far, less than 5% of Tele2 users have used the 3G network, while less than one per cent of all mobile internet consumption has used the 3G network.
Source: https://eng.lsm.lv/article/society/society/05.03.2025-tele2-switches-off-3g-in-latvia.a590270/