Fastweb + Vodafone and Tim allied for 5G network development

Sharing antennas to cover Italy's small municipalities.Fastweb + Vodafone and Tim have decided to cooperate to develop networks through a Radio Access Network (Ran) sharing model and accelerate the deployment of 5G. The target is municipalities under 35,000 inhabitants.

Translated into less technical terms: no more duplicate antennas in the same territories, but a shared use of infrastructure, so as to reduce costs and make network extension sustainable even in less densely populated areas. The two telcos have announced that they have reached a preliminary agreement. The final contract is expected by the second quarter of 2026. With a completion horizon of 2028.

The scope of the agreement is that each operator will develop the network in ten regions, and then make the infrastructure available to the other. The expected result is a coverage of approximately 15,500 5G sites by the end of 2028, concentrated precisely in the areas that are currently underserved.

It is a model that has been recalled several times in recent months as an alternative possibility to consolidation, which in some ways has a precedent in the agreement between Wind Tre and Iliad that led to the Zefiro operation and which overturns the classic competitive approach: no longer running in parallel on the same territories, but dividing the work in order to arrive sooner - and better - where the market alone struggles. A choice that, the companies explain, does not affect commercial competition: each will continue to offer its own services, its own tariffs and its own technological solutions, while relying, in some areas, on the same radio infrastructure.

There is an obvious industrial logic behind the operation. Sharing the Ran allows a significant cut in duplicate investments, frees up financial resources and reduces the environmental impact: less equipment, less surface area consumption, less wasted energy. But, as both Tim and Fastweb+Vodafone emphasise in their communiqués, there is also a broader strategic dimension, which concerns digital inclusion. "By contributing to a more effective deployment of 5G networks," they state, "this initiative supports Italy's digital transformation by strengthening its competitiveness in line with the objectives of the European Digital Decade, bringing direct benefits to consumers, businesses and communities across the country.