U.S. carrier T-Mobile has signed an agreement to purchase 10 MHz of Advanced Wireless Services (AWS) spectrum from U.S. Cellular for $308 million in cash. This additional spectrum will allow for an incremental roll-out of T-Mobile’s 4G LTE network coverage to new markets
Month: June 2013
Verizon Wireless 4G LTE Reaches 500th Market
Verizon Wireless’ 4G LTE network now covers 500 markets in 49 states and operator officially launches next month in Alaska. Parkersburg, W.Va., became the 500th market in the United States with LTE service from Verizon Wireless.
SK Telecom Launches Commercial LTE-Advanced Network
South Korea’s wireless operator SK Telecom has debuted the LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) service through smartphones. To commercialize LTE-A, SK Telecom has already applied Carrier Aggregation (CA) and Coordinated Multi Point (CoMP), and plans to apply Enhanced Inter-Cell Interference Coordination (eICIC) in 2014.
Nokia Siemens Networks Achieve 56 Mbps Peak Upload Throughput in TD-LTE
Nokia Siemens Networks has announced that it has achieved 56 Mbps peak upload throughput in a TD-LTE network using its commercial 4G base station with multiple antenna technology and a single 20 MHz carrier.
915 Million LTE Subscribers Globally by the End of 2016
Analysts IDATE predicts more than 915 million LTE subscriptions worldwide by the end of 2016 and expects first billion to be exceeded during 2017. Asia-Pacific is expected to represent a sizeable 41.6% of the total, North America 21.6%, Africa/Middle East 7.5%, Eastern Europe 4.9% and Western Europe 15.8%.
SIMalliance Publishes New LTE UICC Profile for Mobile Operators
SIMalliance has published an updated technical document for mobile network operators (MNOs) that specifies the integrated features required to provide optimal UICC support for LTE network and IMS services deployment.
MTS Picks Ericsson for LTE Network Development
Russia’s mobile operator Mobile TeleSystems (MTS) has selected Ericsson to deploy the LTE network in four regions covering more than half of Russia. Under the three-year agreement and starting in Q2, 2013, Ericsson will roll out LTE in the Siberian, Ural, Volga, and Southern Federal Districts of Russia.
Aio Wireless Introduces 4G LTE Service
Aio Wireless, a wholly-owned subsidiary of AT&T, has announced the launch of no-annual contract LTE service covering more than 200 million people. Aio has also added Naples and Ft. Myers to the number of markets it serves.
Swisscom Introduces LTE Roaming for its Customers
Switzerland’s telecom operator Swisscom is now offering 4G LTE roaming its customers. From 21 June, Swisscom customers will be able to browse the Internet in South Korea with LTE.
Max Telecom Selects Nokia Siemens Networks as Main Supplier for LTE Equipment
Bulgarian telecom operator Max Telecom has picked Nokia Siemens Networks as the main vendor to provide equipment for its LTE network. Operator plans to launch LTE mobile internet services in Q4 2013.