'TD-LTE dongle may be available in the price range of $50-70 depending upon operators' volume'

How do you see TD-LTE technology deployment vis-à-vis network and CPE ecosystem?

On the infrastructure side, there is good maturity and the technology is ready for commercial usage. On the device front, single-mode devices are available and multi-mode devices would be available soon.

Recently, NSN acquired Motorola Solutions that focused on CPE and dongles on WiMax platform. The company has now developed CPEs and dongles on TD-LTE platform. The price point of TD-LTE dongles is in the range of around $100.

By the end of the next year, single-mode TD-LTE dongle may be available in the price range of $50-70 depending upon operators' volume. Multi-mode devices would be commercially available by the end of the year. The company has also deployed Wi-Fi router, which is cheaper than WiMax router.

On the CPE side, NSN has deployed single-mode TD-LTE dongles for
Saudi Telecom. The company has
also deployed Wi-Fi router for the Brazilian operator.

How has NSN performed in China Mobile's large scale TD-LTE field trial?

In Phase I of China Mobile's large scale TD-LTE field trial, NSN bagged Guangzhou along with New Postcom and Xiamen province was bagged by Motorola (now part of NSN). All the cities had 2 vendors for field trials. The large scale field trial focused on performance, stability, and functional testing and NSN cleared with a pass rate of 97%.

The first round of testing focused on end-to-end system (own EPC and own radio). In each city, NSN deployed 110 sites and the focus was on drive testing and KPI. The latency of the network was in the range of 14 milli seconds (industry norm was around 20-30 milli seconds) and the overall throughput was close to peak value. Even interoperability (IOT) test was also performed.

How has Nokia Siemens Networks performed on TD-LTE front?

We have signed 3 deals till date on TD-LTE technology. Saudi Telecom company has launched its network of 160 sites for Jeddah, Mecca, and Medina cities. In this case, Nokia Siemens Networks has supplied both network as well as devices.

In October, one of Brazil's greenfield operators is planning to launch services in 2.6 GHz. The company is focusing on DirecTV and is moving to telecom. Initially, the focus is on fixed CPEs for the home segment to provide broadband services.

The company has also bagged TD-LTE deal from one of the Middle East operators. The operator is planning to deploy network and CPE in the first quarter of next year.