Smart sets network upgrade to LTE by mid-2012

MANILA, Philippines - Wireless leader Smart Communications will upgrade its entire mobile phone network to “LTE (long-term evolution)-ready” status as early as mid-2012, a top company official said.

“That means we will be able to activate LTE or HSPA+ services at any of our base stations, depending on what the market in that area requires,” PLDT and Smart technology group head Rolando Peña said.

“This is a major component of the P67.1-billion network modernization of PLDT and Smart which we have accelerated and intend to complete within the year,” he added.

LTE is the most advanced fourth generation (4G) wireless technology which is capable of speeds of 100 Mbps and above. High speed access plus (HSPA+) is a 4G technology that can deliver speeds of up to 80 Mbps.

To make its network of over 13,000 base stations 4G-ready, Smart is installing single radio access network (RAN) base stations in all of its cellsites. Single RAN facilities can be easily upgraded to offer either HSPA+ or LTE services through software upgrades and some additional hardware equipment.

PLDT and Smart are also rolling more fiber optic cables (FOCs) to connect its base stations to the rest of the network. FOCs enable the network to carry data traffic in greater volumes and faster speeds with greater resiliency.

As of end-2011, over 5,000 Smart base stations were already 4G-ready—close to 3,000 of which are already 4G-equipped (with LTE, HSPA+ and Wi-Max facilities) —backed by more than 45,000 kilometers of fiber optic cables arranged in “loops”.

“Looping” allows data to be redirected to other avenues or channels, should one channel of connectivity be cut, thus making the PLDT Group’s network the most comprehensive and the most resilient in the Philippines.

“We have fast-tracked this program because consumer and business demand for mobile broadband services is growing rapidly. At the same time, more LTE and HSPA+ devices are being brought into the market,” Peña said.

Market analytics firm Pyramid Research cited in its latest report that increased demand for mobile video is one of the main factors for the 10-fold increase in the number of commercially-available LTE devices last year.

It went as far as to predict that smartphones will surpass personal computers (PCs) as the largest market segment which uses LTE as early as 2014.

In the recently-concluded Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, USA, several LTE-capable phones have been unveiled.

These include the HTC Titan II, the Nokia Lumia 900, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 and the Sony Xperia ion.

Smart was the first Philippine mobile operator to start deploying LTE facilities last year in strategic areas of the country. In November 2011, Smart made “Smart Evolution LTE” available to select members of the media via a closed beta test.

Using LTE-capable USB dongles, test participants experienced speeds of up to 80 Mbps—faster than most commercially-available wired and wireless Internet services in the market today.

Smart has also installed the largest network of HSPA+ base stations which supports Smart Bro Rocket Plug-It and Smart Bro Rocket WiFi Plus, the fastest portable Internet devices in the country.