Orange to test the use of additional frequencies in supplemental downlink mode in partnership with Ericsson and Qualcomm
The trial will be conducted in early 2013 in Toulouse, France
The French telecoms regulator, Arcep, has authorised Orange France to test the use of L-band frequencies to provide mobile broadband systems with supplemental downlink capacity. The objective will be to assess the potential of using additional frequencies to boost the capacity of 3G/UMTS and 4G/LTE networks regardless of the country or operator. Supplemental downlink, in this case using the L-band, is a technology that allows a boost in network capacity by exploiting inter-band multi-carrier technology standardised in 3GPP for 3G/UMTS and 4G/LTE.
On 28 June, Arcep authorised Orange France to use frequencies in the 1452-1492 MHz band, used currently for T-DAB (terrestrial) broadcasts, to conduct tests on mobile broadband downlink. This trial, conducted jointly by Orange, Ericsson and Qualcomm, aims to demonstrate the technology's performance and to stimulate the global emergence of mobile broadband solutions in the future.
The trial will be carried out on Orange France's network in Toulouse during the first quarter of 2013 and will use Ericsson base stations and devices using Qualcomm chipsets. Both the base stations and the devices will use supplementary carrier frequencies in the L-band for downlink operations, combined with a traditional paired carrier at 2.1 GHz. The technology will support existing features of inter-band multi-carrier technology standardised in 3GPP. The roll-out of the trial network will start towards the end of 2012.
An Orange pres releases claimed that CEPT (European Conference of Postal and Telecommunications Administrations), which is responsible for issuing decisions for the harmonised use of the L-band in Europe, considers the reattribution of some spectrum currently reserved for digital audio broadcasting to mobile broadband as a relevant option given the continuing growth of mobile broadband use and the increasing volume of data flowing through networks.
CEPT's FM50 working group, which was formed to consider possible candidate options for use of the 1452-1492 band, is meeting right now in Dublin – its eighth meeting since its inception.
On a global scale, recommendations made by the CEPT will also influence discussions and work on the harmonization of spectrum for mobile broadband that will be undertaken by the International Telecommunication Union – Radiocommunication (ITU-R) at the next World Radio Conference (WRC) in 2015.