MWC - Ericsson, Verizon Wireless and Samsung demonstrate Voice over LTE
14 February 2011
Posted in
News Analysis
Today at Mobile World Congress, Ericsson, Verizon Wireless and Samsung made one of the world's first LTE voice calls over a smartphone with an IMS client for Voice over LTE (VoLTE) according to GSMA specifications. The calls were carried out over Ericsson's LTE demonstration network based on commercial products and using Samsung's 4G LTE smartphone, which will be available through Verizon Wireless in the United States later this year.
VoLTE is said to be designed to provide consumers and users with rich communications services and outstanding call quality. The demonstrations are said to be among the many steps toward commercial availability of interoperable, global devices and network infrastructure supporting voice services over LTE
Based on established industry standards, VoLTE will give network operators the ability to offer enhanced voice services on LTE networks globally. Consumers benefit from additional mobile services such as presence, video and chat, which can be available from any device, location or service provider in both mobile and fixed broadband data networks
"Today's demonstrations are important because operators need to start making strategic decisions about how to maintain and develop their current voice and SMS businesses when launching LTE mobile broadband networks," said Johan Wibergh, Head of Ericsson's Business Unit Networks. "VoLTE allows operators to provide telecom grade voice services, along with enriched multimedia services, using an interoperable, global standard."
"Verizon Wireless has always been an innovator in the technology industry, and VoLTE is the most recent example," said Tony Melone, chief technology officer, Verizon. "We're working hard this year on this technology and expect to have commercial VoLTE services available in 2012."
"Samsung is proud to have played a key role in today's successful trial and demonstration of the power, speed and connectivity of voice over LTE communications," said Tom Jasny, vice president of 4G and mobile broadband for Samsung Mobile. "Samsung has made a significant investment in the development of both LTE-enabled devices and LTE infrastructure and it is gratifying to see our commitment to 4G innovation come to fruition."
The solution for providing VoLTE includes LTE radio access equipment as well as Evolved Packet Core, policy control, Multimedia Telephony (MMTel) deployed in the IMS core as service engine for voice over LTE and fixed services.
