The Fastest of the Fastest: Turkcell Officially Launches 4.5G in Turkey

Turkcell (NYSE:TKC) (BIST:TCELL) officially launched 4.5G in Turkey as LTE-A services on its network went live at midnight on March 31st. Turkcell customers nationwide began to benefit from 4.5G services as of 12.00 am.

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Turkcell Board, CEO, management team, business partners and other stakeholders switched on the 4.5G network with a reception held in Istanbul. (Photo: Business Wire)

With its 4.5G launch, Turkcell will offer the fastest LTE speeds that are supported on commercial terminals globally. Combining this speed with the geographical scope of its coverage – spreading over 81 city centers in a country with a territory of 783.6 thousand km² (302,5 thousand sq. miles)– makes Turkcell unique among its international peers.

Turkcell doubles 4.5G data quotas, declares customer commitments

Prior to the launch, Turkcell announced its customer commitments as Turkey’s mobile users start enjoying a new era of communication. According to the 10-point declaration, which includes, but is not limited to 4.5G services:

1. Turkcell commits to doubling its 4.5G customers’ mobile data quotas for the same price during a 3-month period. With the new 4.5G tariffs, it offers significantly higher data quotas for a fractional increase in rates.2. Customers will not pay penalties when switching between different 4.5G tariffs.3. 4.5G customers who travel outside Turkey will continue to enjoy their existing packages when roaming, preventing roaming billing shocks.4. Turkcell’s smart billing practices and advisors minimize billing shocks in general: When there is an extraordinary spike in the bill, the customer receives a notification and is offered a more beneficial package if applicable.5. When connecting homes and offices with fixed internet, Turkcell makes sure its customers do not suffer from a lack of internet connection – it supports them with mobile internet as they wait for the completion of technical procedures.6. When customers experience a malfunctioning of their smartphones, Turkcell provides substitute devices.7. Turkcell Financial Services company provides flexible payment opportunities for customers to access the devices of their choosing.8. Turkcell maintains an open access attitude in its products and services, including its OTT services, and serves not only its own mobile subscribers, but also the customers of all other operators.9. Turkcell serves its disabled and elderly customers at their homes when necessary.10. In extraordinary circumstances, Turkcell suspends the financial obligations of its customers and notifies them accordingly.

Turkcell had announced the readiness of its network for 4.5G services at a press conference held simultaneously in 5 cities on March 22nd. Download speeds of up to 390 Mbps were achieved at the speed tests carried out during that press conference: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160323005605/en/10-Days-Turkey%E2%80%99s-4.5G-Launch-Turkcell-Announces

For a detailed breakdown of the spectrum that Turkcell acquired during Turkey’s August 26th spectrum auction: http://s1.turkcell.com.tr/hakkimizda/en/yatirimciiliskileri/InvestorAnnouncementLibrary/fass-Tender-Result.pdf

ABOUT TURKCELL: Turkcell is a converged communication and technology services player in Turkey. Turkcell Group has approximately 68.8 million mobile, fixed and IPTV subscribers as of December 31, 2015. Turkcell was one of the first among the global operators to have implemented HSPA+. It has announced two new HSPA+ Technologies on its 3G network to meet rising data usage. Having successfully integrated 3C-HSDPA and DC-HSUPA Technologies, it became the first mobile operator in the world to enable peak speed of 63.3 Mbps downlink while also enabled an 11.5 Mbps uplink on a 3G network. Turkcell is the first telecom operator to offer households fiber broadband connection at speeds of up to 1,000 Mbps in Turkey. As of December 2015, Turkcell’s population coverage is at 99.85% in 2G and 95.03% in 3G. Turkcell Group reported a TRY12.8 billion (US$4.7 billion) revenue with total assets of TRY26.2 billion (US$9.0 billion) as of December 31, 2015. It has been listed on the NYSE and the BIST since July 2000, and is the only NYSE-listed company in Turkey. Read more at www.turkcell.com.tr

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Hande Asik, [phone]Turkcell Corporate Communications - International [e-mail]