Everyone is clamouring to have a piece of the LTE pie, but in a bid to share slices equally, are we just confusing processes and more importantly, consumers?
It’s an exciting time for mobile operators and with many still to deploy LTE, the benefits of getting into the market continue to outweigh the potential pitfalls.
More than 200 operators in 75 countries are predicted to have launched an LTE network by the end of 2013 and LTE connections is forecast to exceed 200 million in the same period. This represents a 17-fold increase in just two years.
Wireless Intelligence predicts that there will be 38 different spectrum frequency combinations used in LTE deployments by 2015. These numbers paint a very clear picture of a fragmented scenario that could cause problems and cost money in the long run. So why can’t we all just get along?
Fuelled by ongoing spectrum auctions, licence renewals and re-farming initiatives across a wide range of frequency bands, the lack of spectrum harmonisation represents a key challenge for the emerging LTE ecosystem, potentially preventing vendors from delivering globally compatible LTE products such as devices and chipsets.
About 300 LTE devices (smartphones, tablets and dongles) should be available by December 2013. LG’s recent announcement that it has now sold over 10 million LTE handsets worldwide is just one example of this trend. The recent IFA exhibition in Berlin saw the major manufacturers announcing many new LTE handsets, including the LG Optimus L9, the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 and HTC’s Desire X.
However, 2013 is set to remain a year of momentum for LTE, rather than one of completion. By December the vast majority of the world’s 1.9 billion smartphone customers are still likely to be using 3G and 2.5G devices.
The lack of international harmony means that LTE-ready handsets must be developed for the particular frequency or frequencies used in their “home” region. Unlike with the rollout of 3G, handset manufacturers cannot create one device that can be sold worldwide. Each device needs to have the correct radio receiver to be able to operate on a particular frequency – essentially a country bespoke model.
Devices created to use LTE networks in one region will be incompatible with those in others, since they rely on fundamentally different bands of radio spectrum. This has already proven unpopular with subscribers, with the iPad 3 being a high-profile victim of this problem. Apple was forced to cease marketing the tablet as “4G ready” following complaints that it would not function on LTE networks outside of North America.
Interestingly, the compatibility problems of the latest devices with LTE networks are not holding back consumer demand. Even where LTE networks are not currently available, LTE-enabled devices such as the iPad 3, the Samsung Galaxy S3 and HTC One X are dominating sales.
Customers in markets like China, France, Spain, Mexico and South Africa often cannot experience the advantages LTE connectivity brings to these devices, yet they are still purchasing the handsets. As the countries yet to implement LTE networks rollout services, the popularity of these devices will grow exponentially. This leaves the mobile operators in an interesting position: instead of existing networks dictating what new devices come to market, devices will instead lead the way on capabilities and services and networks will need to adapt, quickly.
Even beyond handsets, spectrum fragmentation has the potential to hinder global LTE roaming if device manufacturers are required to include support for various disparate frequencies in their devices. If things remain this way, we are unlikely to see a ‘world’ device in a handset form-factor soon.
Fortunately, handset manufacturers are beginning to conquer LTE compatibility problems by developing devices that contain more radios. For example, the hexaband LTE support vaunted in the Samsung S4 means it can support more bands than any other LTE-enabled device currently on the market. Yet, while electronics are advancing quickly enough to solve cross-network compatibility problems in the long-term, operators currently have an incentive to prevent cross-carrier compatibility on devices.
For example, the iPhone 5 for AT&T has the required duplexers, filters, power amplifiers and antenna for T-Mobile’s band IV (AWS, 1.7/2.1 GHz) WCDMA network. However, this compatibility is disabled in the baseband software. By preventing cross-network compatibility, operators have a means to ensure customer loyalty and guarantee that lucrative LTE data revenues come only to them. For example, Verizon has partnered with several manufacturers such as Samsung and Google to release exclusive LTE-ready handsets in recent months.
Clearly, handset manufacturers want to create devices that can operate across various markets simultaneously. Meanwhile, operators stand to benefit from restricting LTE device compatibility. All the significant players in this game have their own agendas.
While consumers may currently be content to purchase the latest devices without actual LTE connectivity, they will soon come to expect the advantages LTE data speeds can bring, especially if it comes at a premium costs.
At that stage operators and handset manufacturers will need to work together to create a holistic approach to the provision of LTE services, or face the wrath of subscribers unable to access what they want, when they want.
