Google adds US Cellular network to its US MVNO Project Fi

Project Fi, the MVNO launched by US internet giant Google a year ago, has added US Cellular to its roster of mobile networks.

“Mobile connectivity is central to everything we do,” insisted Google in the blog announcing the news, before expanding with the standard narrative about how handy wireless communication is. With this in mind Google has decided to add another network to Project Fi to improve the service for users of the MVNO in areas where US Cellular is strong.

When it was launched Project Fi unveiled T-Mobile and Sprint as network partners, while stressing that the network was designed to shift people onto wifi as much as possible. The clever bit regarding multiple cellular providers is the ability to dynamically assess the best coverage at a given location and select that network when using a Project Fi phone.

“By accessing multiple cellular networks, Fi users have a connection nearly 99% of the time, and spend about 95% of cellular time on LTE – which will improve even further with the addition of U.S. Cellular,” blogged Google.

According to Ovum’s WCIS US Cellular is a distant fifth among US operators with around 5 million subscribers, accounting for around a 1% national market share. It seems to be strong in the mid-west, especially in LTE, which it started rolling out in 2012. Google has yet to publish any subscriber data for Project Fi.