SK Telecom said on Sunday that it is officially introducing a service called “data femtocell” to increase data capacity for small areas like homes, schools and workplaces.

The service will use the nation’s top mobile carrier’s 3G networks to ease overcrowding of traffic in areas that have up to about 20 network users.

SKT will make the service available in 1,000 locations, mostly inside buildings, until the end of this year, company officials said.

“Because data femtocells use 3G networks, the security is upgraded compared to Wi-Fi and it is able to offer stabilized service without much interference,” said a SKT official.

“It is also expected to increase the speed of traffic by more than double.”

The details are part of the country’s leading mobile carrier’s plan announced earlier in August to set up about 10,000 data femtocells by next year in a bid to support the company’s unlimited data plan for smartphone users.

Data femtocells will most likely be used for traffic-crowded small areas that require mobility, while Wi-Fi is utilized for bigger scale traffic flow at a fixed spot, according to SKT officials.

By Cho Ji-hyun (sharon@heraldcorp.com)