Telecom Italia (TIM) will trial LTE broadcast with Ericsson as part of the operator’s ongoing efforts to modernise and target new services.
The two companies will test a “new generation of mobile TV” by transmitting a pre-recorded music concert to smartphones at this year’s Milan Expo world fair.
The Samsung devices contain LTE broadcast-supporting chipsets by Qualcomm.
Content from TIMvision – the operator’s on-demand TV service – will also be transmitted via LTE broadcast during the experiment, with users able to chose between a selection of channels.
Mario Di Mauro, Head of Strategy & Innovation at Telecom Italia, said the trial was a demonstration of the operator’s efforts to target new growth areas as part of the company’s rebrand.
He said: “This live trial of LTE broadcasting with an ecosystem of excellent partners shows how TIM is continuing to pursue the route of innovation to support the growth of new markets that are fundamental for telcos, such as high definition video on the move.
“Active involvement in the evolution of digital services is essential for a company that wants to be a technology enabler and service provider in the distribution of multimedia content and services.”
LTE broadcast allows network providers to transmit HD video and multimedia content to multiple users via a single data transmission.
[Read more: Huawei, Vodafone demo LTE broadcast at La Liga match]
Alessandro Francolini, VP and Sales Director at Ericsson, added: “With video traffic on mobile networks growing by 55 percent every year from now to 2020, operators will find themselves facing a great challenge – to guarantee a high quality audio and video experience to their subscribers, at any time in any place.
“LTE broadcast is the ideal solution to optimise network resources and enable new business models for the distribution of multimedia content.”