US operators are about to start shutting down 3G network services

According to a report from Light Reading on August 21, Beijing time, after nearly 20 years since its launch in 2002, the US market is about to officially bid farewell to 3G technology.

The news shows that all major wireless network operators in the United States are preparing to shut down their 3G networks in the next few years. AT&T explained in a statement: "To better support the high data usage on our network, we are retiring our 3G network to increase capacity for next-generation technology."

The following is a timetable for shutting down 3G networks by major wireless network operators in the United States:

Importantly, all of these operators have already taken the first important step toward shutting down their 3G networks: They are no longer activating any 3G devices. This is a common move by wireless network operators when transitioning to a new technology -- usually they do this a few years before the actual shutdown, assuming that most users will naturally upgrade to devices that support the newer technology before service is shut down.

In addition, some operators hope to prolong the process. For example, Verizon decided to postpone the shutdown of its 3G network service by one year.

To be clear, there is precedent for large-scale shutdowns of 3G networks in the United States. For example, Sprint recently shut down its WiMAX network. And, AT&T discontinued its 2G network service in 2017. According to documents AT&T filed with the SEC at the time, the company had 4 million users on its 2G network, most of which were IoT devices.