French telecoms vendor Alcatel-Lucent working in partnership with network operator China Mobile has unveiled a major addition to its ‘lightRadio Metro Radio’ product range that the two companies expect will accelerate the roll-out of 4G TD-LTE services across China.
TD-LTE is the 4G standard developed for use across China and is now being used by other network operators around the world.
According to Alcatel-Lucent, lightRadio Metro Radio houses two lightRadio cubes which are integrated with a directional antenna, enabling it to provide coverage normally associated with a much larger remote radio unit linked to an external antenna via RF coaxial cable.
The company added that its lightRadio products reduce costs, power-consumption and size of LTE network elements, helping operators provide for mobile video and data.
According to Alcatel-Lucent, the new lightRadio Metro Radio 4G TD-LTE range was a jointly development with the Chinese telco and sees a formal launch this week as part of its wider, so-called ‘Global TD-LTE Initiative’.
China Mobile’s first trial TD-LTE network covers thirteen Chinese cities using lightRadio Metro Radio that is expected to bring high-performance 4G services to the people in Shanghai, Nanjing and Qingdao.
Demand for mobile Internet, video and data in the world’s largest smartphone market is growing rapidly as China Mobile looks to grow its existing 722 million subscriber base. The partners said that lightRadio Metro Radio will now be rolled-out in both busy indoor and outdoor locations, such as retail malls and sports stadia.
“4G TD-LTE is undergoing the final large-scale tests before commercial deployment and once completed the active antennae like Alcatel-Lucent’s lightRadio Metro Radio will be key to rolling out this service to meet our customers’ needs wherever they are” said China Mobile Research Institute’s President, Bill Huang, President.
Rajeev Singh-Molares, President of Alcatel-Lucent Asia Pacific Region added: “As consumption of mobile data and video escalates in China, our small lightRadio Metro Radios will satisfy demand with the highest performance that China Mobile’s customers’ have come to expect.”