Spanish telco Telefónica has just taken the wraps off a new service that promises to enable smartphone and tablet users to move seamlessly between different wireless access technologies without losing the connection.
Dubbed ‘VoLTE’ (Voice-over-LTE) Telefonica said its new converged Wi-Fi and LTE multi-mode service will be used in the roll-out of its cellular networks that will enable call performance similar to LTE with a roaming capability between operators and countries.
Promising seamless handover, Telefonica said the new service capabilities will also include a set of network policies to facilitate network discovery, irrespective of access technology.
Commenting on the new service capability, Telefonica’s Chief Technology Officer Enrique Blanco said: “There is much talk about the rising demand for smarter devices and faster mobile broadband data speeds, but we should not overlook the fact that voice will play a key role in the delivery of future multimedia services. To this end, we are demonstrating the most advanced voice over 4G tests ever conducted, and additionally LTE data, with a clear focus on capacity, quality and speed.”
The company added that its VoLTE voice services – LTE to LTE call – will support the first VoLTE user devices on the market in Europe which run on improved chipsets and support VoLTE.
According to Telefonica, its VoLTE offering can be combined with IP-based services, such as High Definition voice, Rich Communication Suite (RCS) as well as instant messaging, video share and phone books.
Handset device manufacturers are equally ebullient over the new hybrid capabilities of VoLTE and WiFi. Said
Samsung Spain’s Celestino García, vice president of its IM Division: “VoLTE networks is one of the most efficient and innovative service by not only offering a best in class data experience, but also providing high quality voice service to end-users. Samsung devices are been designed to guarantee a Premium LTE experience, as well as ready to head this new industry’s challenge in Spain.”