Trading Markets | February 22, 2011 | Press Release
SYDNEY, Feb 22, 2011 (Xinhua via COMTEX) —
Australian telecom operator Vodafone announced Tuesday that it will replace all 2G and 3G equipment at all base stations throughout Australia with a Chinese company’s solution as part of its overall plan to improve mobile coverage and download speeds. Vodafone said it will replace around 5800 existing 2G and 3G base station sites with SingleRAN solution provided by Huawei Technologies Ltd, China’s leading telecommunication equipment manufacturer.
Huawei’s solution is capable of delivering 2G, 3G and, later, 4G or Long Term Evolution (LTE) from a single base station site. Vodafone will also install the new Huawei network equipment at more than 2200 new base station sites that it will bring into its network over the next 18 months. “We are installing the latest technology from the company that we believe is the best network hardware and software vendor in the world to deliver a better mobile experience to our customers,” said Nigel Dews, CEO of Vodafone. “We’ve got a lot of work to do but we have a very clear picture of what needs to be done. We start immediately so many customers should start to see and experience real improvements in the network,” he said.
Vodafone has prioritised its national 2G and 3G radio access network (RAN) replacement project at all base stations throughout Australia with engineers targeting the highest demand sites first. Vodafone will replace and install radio equipment at around 8000 sites over the next 18 months.
Vodafone will also replace its radio network controller (RNC) equipment with the latest Huawei technology, which will be located at sites in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth. The RNC equipment serves as a hub that is used to control and optimise the performance of the national mobile network.
Peter Rossi, Chief Technology Officer at Huawei Australia, said: “This network upgrade will allow Vodafone to offer cutting edge mobile speeds and services across its mobile network. Huawei’s SingleRAN solution will enable Vodafone to upgrade to 4G or LTE at the flick of a switch, with the first LTE next generation services expected to come online later this year.”
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