Nokia on OFDM based 3GPP 'LTE'
2009 is a bit aggressive, but ...
>> Nokia Sees Commercial LTE solution from 2009
Anne Morris
Total Telecom (Helsinki)
05 October 2006
totaltele.com
Standard for 3G evolution technology to be completed in 2007.
Nokia said the standard for Long-Term Evolution (LTE) technology, the next stage in the development of cellular networks based on GSM/WCDMA, should be completed in 2007 with commercial solutions from the Finnish vendor set to be available from around 2009.
What's not really clear as yet is how much it will cost operators to move to LTE.
LTE will be part of 3GPP Release 8 and is expected to enable data speeds of 100 megabits per second on the downlink and 50 Mbps on the uplink. The new networks will be based on packet-switched technology as well as a new OFDM air interface, meaning that the move to LTE will represent a larger leap for carriers than the upgrade from WCDMA to HSDPA/HSUPA.
According to Kai Sahala, head of radio networks strategic planning at Nokia Networks, the move to LTE will not be as smooth as the current upgrades to HSPA, which is essentially just a software upgrade, because of the requirement for new radio access equipment.
Sahala said it's difficult to put a figure on the cost of LTE at present, although he commented that building an LTE network should not be as expensive as the initial cost of the original 3G networks since operators will already have some elements in place.
"It should be more straightforward," he said, adding that LTE also provides a flat, packet-switched architecture that will no longer include circuit-switched voice. Sahala noted, however, that circuit–switched voice is still likely to be in place "for years to come – longer than you think".
Sahala commented that Nokia is making efforts to ensure that upgrading to LTE is as cost-efficient as possible by reusing equipment and space on existing sites. LTE is designed to work in existing cellular spectrum as well as the 2.5-gigahertz band, he said.
LTE is not generally seen as "4G" technology despite the hike in data rates from the current levels seen in 3G networks. Sahala said the International Telecommunication Union has specified 4G data speeds at around 1 gigabit per second on the downlink, with new spectrum also likely to be required.
On the whole Sahala thinks that LTE will be implemented gradually, and noted that the "wedding cake" model is likely to continue, whereby a number of different cellular networks will coexist. This means that operators would have LTE in some areas and WCDMA in others, while EDGE technology, most likely the faster variant called EDGE Evolution, could also still be used in areas where it's too expensive to deploy LTE.
Given the faster speeds that LTE is expected to allow, where will WiMAX fit in? Nokia has been very supportive of WiMAX developments and Sahala said the Finnish vendor believes the best opportunity for the technology is for deployment by operators that do not have a 3G licence. He added that there is a group within the 3GPP focusing on the interworking of LTE with WiMAX, also based on OFDM.
Sahala did not wish to comment on the fact that Siemens has been less supportive in the past of mobile WiMAX, however, given that regulatory approval has yet to be issued for the merger of Nokia Networks with Siemens' carrier networks business. He said approval is expected to be given at the end of October, with 1 January 2007 set as the target date for the formal establishment of the new company.
So why do we need LTE? Sahala said the technology was designed to create an evolution path for 3G to ensure that cellular networks remain competitive. But from a user point of view he believes that tasks currently undertaken on the PC will increasingly move to the mobile phone – or the "multimedia computer" as Nokia now likes to call them.
"The more the devices can do, the more you need this technology," he said, pointing out that phones now have 5-megapixel cameras, radios, television and more. "Communications will become more important," he added, to allow users to connect and share content.
As for what LTE will be called once it becomes a commercial service, Sahala wryly pointed out that "long-term evolution" would no longer be an appropriate concept for a technology that is actually available. So he thinks "LTE" is unlikely to be used, with carriers perhaps deciding to use new services to highlight the faster capabilities of their networks. <<
Best and most up to date currently available overview of 3GPP 'LTE' and earlier 3GPP GSM/3GSM releases including 2.5G EDGE and enhanced EDGE Evolution (by Peter Rysavy foe 3GAmericas: September 2006) is here ...
Mobile Broadband: EDGE, HSPA and LTE
3gamericas.org
- Eric - |
