Editor’s Note: Wireless operators are a busy bunch, and as such RCR Wireless News will attempt to gather some of the important announcements that may slip through the cracks from the world’s largest carriers in a weekly wrap-up. Enjoy!
–Nokia Solutions and Networks said it has scored the “largest non-Chinese vendor share” of China Mobile’s TD-LTE network plans. The vendor claimed that it was awarded 11% of the total contract, consistent with the share provided to other non-Chinese vendors, as well as “another low single-digit share as a result of selling through resellers also selected” by China Mobile.
NSN noted that with the deals it has secured entry into six new provinces compared to its TD-SCDMA footprint in China.
The contract calls for NSN to provide radio equipment elements from its Flexi Multiradio 10 base station lineup for China Mobile’s 1.9 GHz, 2.3 GHz and 2.6 GHz bands. The vendor said the solution will cover new single-mode implementation of the TD-LTE network as well as the deployment of part of the network in “TD-SCDMA/TD-LTE dual mode, supporting TD-SCDMA site software upgrade to the dual mode implementation.”
China Mobile, which is the world’s largest wireless operator, announced earlier this year that it had tapped Ericsson, NSN, Alcatel-Lucent, Huawei and ZTE to build out its TD-LTE network.
–Etisalat Group, which provides telecom services across portions of the Middle East, Africa and Asia, said it had expanded its partnership with NetComm Wireless to provide machine-to-machine services to Etisalat’s vertical markets. The agreement extends NetComm’s M2M reach into 15 countries.
Etisalat recently launched an M2M control center in the United Arab Emirates, which it claimed was the first of its kind in the Middle East.
–A new report from Business Monitor forecasts that Nigerian mobile operators will add 45 million new customers through 2017, bolstered by plans to expand and upgrade their networks. Those upgrades are expected to include the rollout of LTE services powered by market consolidation.
“Business Monitor sees this as a positive development as, through consolidation, tier-two operators are able to gain scale for bigger network deployments while the transition to LTE should enable them to compete better with 3G HSPA+ offerings from the GSM operators,” the firm noted.
Business Monitor explained that in recent months Nigerian telecom regulator NCC “has implemented several regulatory measures expected to benefit consumers in the mobile market including mobile number portability, SIM registration and quality of service requirements.” NCC earlier this year announced cuts to mobile termination rates designed to reduce the cost of voice services
–Sprint recently announced that Canvas’ mobile business application platform was now available to the carrier’s business customers. The cloud-based offering is designed to allow business to replace paper forms with mobile forms and applications that can be accessed from smartphones, tablets and personal computers.
The Canvas offering provides access to more than 10,000 customizable mobile business applications, including inspection forms, work orders, surveys and other business-related documents.
–Despite reported shortages, Apple’s latest iPhone and iPad models are heading towards broader availability.
Alaskan telecommunications provider General Communications announced it would begin carrying the iPad Air with Wi-Fi and cellular connectivity “in the coming weeks.” The carrier said the device would be compatible with its recently launched LTE network providing download speeds of up to 12 megabits per second.
GCI announced a partnership last year with in-state rival Alaska Communications Systems to combine their operations under a new entity dubbed Alaska Wireless Network. The deal called for GCI to control two-thirds of the venture and manage operations, with ACSG controlling the remaining one-third. As part of that venture, the two operators combined plans to build out a single LTE network serving both carriers across the state.
While GCI was staking claim to the new iPad models, small- and mid-sized enterprise supplier Cbeyond said it would begin offering Apple’s latest iPhone 5S and 5C models to its customer base beginning Nov. 8. Pricing for the new models was not announced.
Additional carrier news can be found on the RCR Wireless News “Carriers” page.
Bored? Why not follow me on Twitter?
