Repeaters are devices that can help people with a poor indoor mobile phone signal get better indoor coverage. They work best when there is a good outdoor signal that can be boosted indoors. In 2018, Ofcom authorised the use of mobile repeaters, provided they met certain technical requirements. Ofcom has now decided to extend the range of static indoor repeaters available for people to buy and install themselves without a licence from early 2022. In particular, Ofcom will allow the use of two additional types of repeater:

1. provider specific repeaters; and
2. multi-operator repeaters.

Both these types of repeater may amplify the frequencies of more than one mobile operator at a time, provided they meet appropriate technical requirements specified by Ofcom.

In order to help the public identify repeaters that can be legally used without a licence, rather than illegal devices that risk causing interference, Ofcom will also publish on its website a list of repeaters that it understands comply with the technical requirements of its licence exemption regime. Ofcom says that this will not be an endorsement of particular products, but a list of devices that have been subjected to testing by an accredited test house to show they meet Ofcom’s technical requirements. To read the statement in full, click here.