Popular LTE-ready handsets, such as the Apple iPhone 5, Samsung Galaxy SII and SIII, and the Apple iPad 3 tablet, now account for 35 percent of all 3G data traffic in mature European markets, according to new research.
RAN analytics provider Actix said that as operators across Europe follow their Asian and US counterparts in rolling out 4G LTE networks this year, tech-savvy subscribers keen on a “super fast” data experience are ready and increasingly eager to switch to LTE services.
But this heaps pressure on operators, who cannot afford to disappoint subscribers with a poor user experience.
“Subscribers are ready and waiting on the operator to deliver on day one and will be very unforgiving of any service issues,” said Neil Coleman, Director of Global Marketing, Actix. “Operators simply cannot afford to deliver a single poor day on LTE experience.”
In order to avoid poor performance problems, Actix said operators need to properly understand capacity demands and accurately identify the five percent of locations that carry at least 50 percent of all data traffic on the network.