Nokia Siemens unveils Texan LTE center: Dallas facility to focus on tech requirements for N.A. carriers

Nokia Siemens Networks said it’s creating a research center in Texas that will focus on the development and research of Long Term Evolution technology.
The company’s Next Gen Technology Lab in Dallas will focus on the requirements of operators in North America and provide support through development, verification and interoperability activities. NSN said this will ensure that its LTE roadmaps meet operator needs when it comes to infrastructure and devices.
“The new lab will further enable us to capitalize on the exceptional market opportunities for next generation networks in North America and the growing expectations of consumers and enterprises for bandwidth hungry mobile applications,” NSN North America President Sue Spradley said in a statement.
Juha Lappalainen will oversee the lab’s development. He previously served as the company’s CTO of North America.
Verizon Wireless and AT&T Mobility have announced that they will launch LTE networks. Sprint Nextel Corp. is heading in another direction with its mobile WiMAX-based joint venture with Clearwire Corp., though analysts have noted that the carrier could still look at LTE for deployment on its CDMA network.
This week, Verizon Wireless said it is aiming to have some markets offering LTE by the end of next year. AT&T Mobility is not expected to dive into LTE deployments until at least 2012.
NSN officials said the lab will be the hub for all LTE trials in the U.S. and Canada and testing would start in the first quarter of next year. The lab will also develop local products to address specific needs of carriers in North America.
The standard for LTE is not yet in place. A deadline this month has been extended until March. The current proposal is said to be frozen. The technology is undergoing standardization by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project.
LTE is expected to improve data speeds and reduce latency. It promises to deliver new multimedia intensive and rich call applications.