A Korean court has authorised mobile operator KT to end its 2G mobile service, wrapping up a complicated saga that began last month, reports the JoongAng Daily. The Seoul High Court dismissed the request by 900 subscribers of KT's 2G service who were hoping to stop the operator from shutting down the service. With this, KT plans to end its 2G service and start its 4G service from 3 January. KT originally planned to end the aging service on 7 December, before a class-action suit threw a temporary spanner in the works. In justifying his decision, Seoul High Court Judge Sung Baek-hyun said that the users' demand could hinder the use of radio spectrum, which are deemed public goods. KT has been claiming that a far higher number of users would gain from its services if the 2G technology makes way for the LTE service. The group of KT 2G users filed a class-action suit against the Korea Communications Commission (KCC) on 30 November for approving KT's plan to ax the network, arguing that the carrier used 'illegal means' to reduce its 2G users and that the regulator turned a blind eye to this. KT was required by law to scale back its 2G users before being eligible to make the switch. The Seoul Administrative Court issued a preliminary injunction on 7 December temporarily preventing KT from ending its 2G service, which nullified the KCC's approval until the case went to trial. This came as a blow to KT as it had planned to sever ties with 2G that night, just hours after the ruling was made. KT welcomed the latest ruling and vowed to join the 4G rush next week.
