3G/mobile broadband industry news from the UMTS Forum
25 September 2009
Huawei has unveiled a new 56 Mbps HSPA+ solution, which will be commercially launched in 2010. It will enable operators to double peak mobile broadband download speeds to up to 56 Mbps through a software upgrade. The new solution, which features multi-carrier and MIMO (multiple-input-multiple-output), was demonstrated in Beijing at the P&T/Wireless & Networks Comm China 2009 show.
Finland’s mobile operator DNA has introduced a new mobile broadband modem manufactured by Nokia, supporting peak data transfer rates of up to 10.2 Mbps – currently the fastest in the market. DNA is the first operator in Finland to offer Nokia’s mobile broadband modem devices. The co-operation aims to give customers access to higher data speeds enabled by DNA’s WCDMA/HSPA mobile network. The Nokia Internet Stick CS-15 device will be marketed as part of the operator’s Mokkula family of mobile broadband products. Customers on a 24-month fixed-term contract can get the modem free of charge.
SmarTone Macau has been awarded a 3G UMTS licence. The company plans to launch commercial 3G services in 2010. SmarTone Macau will invest over MOP180 million (US$23 million) in the rollout of its WDMA/HSPA network by 2013 to offer a range of advanced 3G multimedia services. The operator expects to leverage the 3G experience of its parent company in Hong Kong, where SmarTone-Vodafone provides HSPA services and plans to upgrade its network to HSPA+ before moving to LTE.
Ericsson has launched a new HSPA-enabled mobile broadband module aimed at the consumer electronics sector at the Intel Developer Forum (IDF). Named the C3607w, it can be embedded in e-book readers, GPS navigators and other portable consumer electronic devices,enabling mobile broadband access. It could potentially also be integrated into media players, as well as durable goods. The C3607w is Ericsson’s fourth consumer electronics module in twelve months. It is also the vendor’s most compact and the fastest embedded mobile broadband module to date, capable of reaching peak uplink speeds of 5.76 Mbps with up to 40% less power consumption. The device will be commercially available in the first quarter of 2010.
Montenegro’s leading mobile operator Promonte has selected China’s ZTE as the sole network equipment supplier and service partner for its mobile network upgrade and expansion. Under the terms of the five-year contract, ZTE will replace Promonte’s existing GSM and WCDMA/HSPA radio, core and transmission networks in Montenegro with a future-proof system supporting GSM, UMTS, HSPA+ and LTE, as well as new service systems including IMS (IP Multimedia Subsystems). ZTE will be also responsible for implementation, operation and support services during the contract period.
T-Mobile Austria has awarded Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN) a contract to modernize its 3G network, aiming to improve customer experience and reduce its impact on the environment. According to the contract, NSN will deploy its Flexi Multiradio Base Station technology across T-mobile’s nationwide footprint in Austria. The highly compact Flexi Base Station, which enables 30% savings in power consumption, is LTE ready via a remote software upgrade.
Vodafone has revamped it mobile broadband strategy and launched a new integrated mobile internet platform, branded Vodafone 360, which can be access on both the mobile and PC. The new service gathers all of the customer’s contacts, multimedia content, status updates and messaging services in one place in a move to enhance the user’s experience of the social media. With the launch scheduled in eight European countries by the end of 2009, the Vodafone 360 platform will be initially available on two Vodafone-branded LiMo-powered HSDPA handsets developed by Samsung (Vodafone 360 H1 and Vodafone 360 M1) and will be preloaded on four Nokia Symbian smartphones.
O2 is planning to launch the HSDPA-enabled Palm Pre smartphone on 16 October in the U.K. The Pre will be available for free to O2 customers on 24-month or 18-month contracts priced between GBP44.05 (US$70.74) and GBP73.41 per month. The Pre is the first mobile device to run on Palm’s proprietary operating system webOS. The smartphone features a 3.1" multi-touch screen and a sliding full QWERTY keyboard, Wi-Fi, GPS, 3-megapixel camera with flash, stereo Bluetooth, microUSB, and 8GB of internal memory.
| Upcoming Events endorsed by or with the participation of the UMTS Forum | |
|
|
| For a full list please see events supported by the UMTS Forum | |
leave-mobilennium@list.umts-forum.org