Christer Friberg, technical sales manager GSM RAN, Ericsson, looks at the technical provisions for serving the next billion mobile users

The number of mobile subscribers globally recently passed one billion, and is expected to reach two billion by the end of 2007. The vast majority of this subscriber growth — about 80% — will come from high-growth markets, in regions such as Eastern Europe, Central Asia, the Asia-Pacific region, the Middle East and Africa.

In fact, growth in many of these regions is exceeding all expectations, with countries like Russia and the CIS states leading the way. In August alone, Russia itself added 3.1 million new mobile subscribers, following on from just over three million net additions in July and taking mobile penetration in the country to 38.4 per cent (source: sotovik.com). These kinds of growth rates look set to be repeated in other Eastern European and Central Asian markets. And as penetration rates increase, operators will be looking to expand their service offerings beyond the cities and other built-up areas into more remote and less populated areas.

When building out or expanding radio networks in these markets, mobile operators may be tempted to deploy the lowest-cost radio solutions available, in order to minimize capital expenditure and maximize profitability. However, mobile communications needs change rapidly, and such low-cost infrastructure may not be able to scale or support future services. Taking a longer-term view and focusing on minimizing Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) will help operators reduce the overall cost of building and running the network while also maintaining high service quality and scalability to meet future subscriber and service expansion.

The challenge of growth
In new growth markets — whether in rural areas, or in towns and cities — the main focus is on increasing subscriber penetration. Often these new subscribers will come from a segment of the population that could not previously afford mobile telephony services or who previously lived outside mobile coverage. The big challenge here is to deliver mobile services at a lower level of average revenue per user (ARPU) while still maintaining profitability.

New radio techniques are lending operators in high-growth markets a helping hand, by reducing entry barriers, maintaining profit margins and offering long-term adaptability. Several advances in GSM/EDGE and CDMA2000 radio solutions have been made specifically to tackle the challenge of delivering optimized radio coverage in regions where little or none exists today, in a cost-effective, low-risk way. They offer a cost-efficient entry solution, starting from just a few Radio Base Station (RBS) sites, that has the flexibility to expand capacity many times over within existing RBS cabinets to meet future traffic demands. 

Through careful choice and implementation of their network solution, operators can reduce the cost per produced traffic minute by up to 50%, and open up opportunities to reach entirely new market segments profitably. Radio solutions specially adapted for high-growth markets can not only reduce actual base station costs by 10-20 per cent, but also reduce the number of radio sites by 30-50% over all. In addition, to optimize total cost of ownership from a whole network perspective, operators should also consider their approach for the core network, transmission network and service layer.

Targeted radio solutions

For most operators in high-growth markets, subscriber acquisition is the main route to profitability: more subscribers mean more revenues and better economies of scale. These new subscribers may be split into two main segments, each with their own specific characteristics, which can be targeted with different technical solutions.

The first segment comprises subscribers in urban and suburban areas. Here, traffic and coverage already exist, and the key challenge is to add more subscribers when available spectrum is typically limited. For such ‘interference-limited’ areas, new Base Station Subsystem (BSS) radio features squeeze more traffic from limited radio spectrum by optimizing network, cell and channel capacity so that more carriers can be inserted into the radio network without jeopardizing radio quality.

The second segment includes subscribers in rural areas, where traffic demand is unknown since there is no pre-existing coverage. Infrastructure investment here is commercially risky: there is no guarantee that it will be paid back. For such regions — characterized by smaller towns and villages and sparsely populated areas — there are efficient radio solutions that minimize the total number of RBS sites required.

There is a common misconception that rural areas are best served with ‘low-priced’ equipment, in order to minimize business risk. However, it is advanced radio solutions that reduce the number of radio sites needed and minimize operation and maintenance requirements — while still offering room for expansion and development in the future. The key is to maximize the utilisation of the investment each radio sites demands. With advanced radio solutions, operators can cover larger areas, reach more potential subscribers and spread site costs across a larger subscriber base.

Where savings can be made

The two main cost elements in mobile networks are capital expenditure (CAPEX), which includes all costs related to initial investments, and operating expenditure (OPEX), which includes recurring network running costs.

The lion’s share of mobile operators’ CAPEX — some 50-80% — is accounted for by network equipment, and most of this is related to the radio access network.

A typical RBS site includes many different elements, and the cost for the RBS equipment itself is only one part of the total cost of installing a new site. There are significant costs related to the various resources and services required to install and commission the site, whether sourced internally or externally.  The actual costs of site materials and services vary according to local market conditions, but typically make up around two-thirds of the total cost for a complete radio site.
Many of the OPEX items for an RBS site are easy to predict, as they are based on known costs for power consumption, transmission and site rental. However, there are some potentially large unknown costs resulting from the number of maintenance visits required, for example, to deal with faults.

There are many potential failure points that require manual intervention at an RBS site, including batteries, air conditioning units and transmission equipment, to name a few. Such costs can be difficult to predict, since they include overall manning levels, the actual time personnel spend travelling to the site and equipment (vehicles, spare parts, etc.). The RBS is the most sensitive part on the site and it needs to be reliable and robust. An RBS configuration built using a low number of reliable units will help minimize unwanted sites visits. The best way to drive down the total cost of installing and running a radio network, therefore, is to reduce the number of sites needed and to deploy low-maintenance solutions.

Balancing coverage and capacity

While basic entry-level radio solutions may appear to be an optimum solution for sparsely populated rural areas, the configuration options available from more flexible RBS equipment enable operators to optimize radio network deployment to minimize the number of radio sites. Both the RBS’ ability to reach the phone (downlink) and to receive the weak signal from the phone (uplink) need to be considered during radio network planning. Recent advances in GSM/EDGE radio systems optimize downlink power and uplink sensitivity to suit various conditions, meeting all coverage and capacity needs in a cost-effective way, and making the best use of network investments. These include: Transmitter Coherent Combining (TCC), which extends down-link coverage by doubling RBS output power; Four-Way Receiver Diversity (4WRD), which extends up-link coverage by combining signals from four antenna branches, and; Smart Range, which offers scalable capacity in base station sites with large cell ranges.

In combination, these techniques deliver much larger cell areas, reduce the number of radio sites required and cut CAPEX per square kilometre significantly — often by more than half.
The scenario that follows illustrates how sa GSM operator can start deployment with large cells providing limited capacity, and add capacity over time as it is needed to meet new traffic demands, as shown in Figure 1 (above). It shows how an initial site with extreme coverage can have its capacity expanded more than ten-fold through the addition of transceiver (TRX) hardware and the efficient use of BSS software features.

In the first step, coverage is maximized and initial investment is minimized by keeping the number of sites to a minimum. Double TRUs, or dTRUs, containing two TRX in one physical unit, can be configured as a single TRX with double the output power; performance can be further enhanced using four-receiver diversity in the uplink. As traffic demands grow, step 2 enhances capacity simply by the insertion of an additional dTRU per cell, enabling up to three times more subscribers to be served due to effects from trunking efficiency. No upgrade to the initial antenna and feeder system is required.  For step 3, no site visit is needed. From the operations centre, the second dTRU is configured back to a higher-capacity mode and three TRXs are provided per cell. Capacity is now more than five times the initial configuration. No changes to the site are required. An additional Dynamic Overlay/Underlay feature is introduced to provide traffic steering between the two layers in the cell with different coverage.

Finally, step 4 can also be performed without a site visit and increases capacity to fourteen times the initial configuration. With load-based Dynamic Half-Rate, traffic channels can be allocated at a certain blocking threshold value. The Half-Rate feature enables two users to share the available resource in the cell with the compromise of some degradation of voice quality. At peak times, all connections might use the Half-Rate feature. As traffic levels grow even higher, operators have two options available for adding more capacity. One option is to add more macro RBS capacity by deploying additional RBS cabinets at the same site. The other is to deploy micro RBSs to offload macro cells. As the operator only has to make this decision once the traffic has grown sufficiently, the risk is removed from the investment and pay-back calculations are more certain.

Taking the network view

While it is radio network technology that offers the most significant potential for savings in total cost of ownership for operators in high-growth markets, it is important to take a holistic network view to derive maximum overall network efficiency and performance. This means taking the core network, transmission, service layer and service solutions into consideration as well.

One important issue is the choice of transmission technology for extending, and expanding, coverage in high-growth areas — especially where demand is unpredictable and rapidly changing. Microwave transmission links offer a number of distinct advantages in these situations. As well as being faster and less costly to install than fibre, for example, microwave transmission systems also offer highly scalable capacity — ranging from 2Mbit/s to n x 155Mbit/s. With a break-even point of just below one kilometre, microwave transmission links typically reduce the main transmission cost by a factor of ten, when compared with fibre solutions. RBS units are now available with integrated microwave transmission, which can reduce overall capital costs by as much as 30 per cent. 

A key contributor to profitability is the high utilization of radio network investment. By increasing the number of subscribers that can be served by each radio site, new radio solutions bring down the cost per produced minute, and enable operators to address new low-spending market segment profitably. Further, by taking a holistic network view, operators in high-growth markets can boost the efficiency and performance of their networks and optimize total cost of ownership.

A revolution in network coverage optimisation will eliminate costly excess infrastructure, claims Joe Moore, managing director of Sigma Wireless.

Optimisation experts estimate that most Mobile Network Operators currently install as much as 30% more infrastructure than is required to achieve acceptable service levels than would be the case if the optimisation process was completed fully. The process is complex and very costly, not least because of the difficulty in getting access to transmitter sites, shutting down the network and carrying out changes at the top of the mast.   However, the added difficulty for many is how to optimise a 3G network at the initial phase and then as the network matures.

The fundamentals of the problem

The fundamentals that force Mobile Network Operators to install excess infrastructure begin almost from the moment the decision is made to roll out a new network.  Once that decision is made, the key challenge is to do so in an effective and speedy fashion. Pressure is on to find new sites, obtain planning approval, install and commission the radio and ancillary equipment — in as many selected sites as possible, in a short timeframe.

Sites are considered commissioned if measured results correspond to design predictions. When results fail to correspond to design, then some diagnostic work is carried out to assess if the drive test results are more accurate or if the site equipment has some failure mode. Each time this work is carried out, the operator must plan to get access to the site. This can involve getting the landlord’s permission if the site is not owned, shutting down the transmitter site, and either adjustment of the tilt angle of the antenna or even replacement. At some point in the optimisation process, priority shifts to commissioning new sites at the expense of actually achieving full optimisation. The effect is non-optimal QoS and extra cost.

In addition to the logistics and project management issues outlined above, there are new technical problems associated with 3G network rollout that suggest a new approach is required. The following statement appears in the 3GPP technical Report TR 25.802, which summarises the need for the ability to tilt antennas remotely (in effect making remote variable tilt a de facto requirement!).

“Because of the interference limitation property of the CDMA-based [Code Division Multiple Access] UTRAN [Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access Network], the tilting of antennas is essential for the successful operation and optimisation of UMTS network coverage. It would be very beneficial if it were possible to remotely control the tilting of antennas in order to optimise radio coverage areas.

The ability for the operator to control the electrical tilt of the antennas remotely from the O&M [Operations & Maintenance] Network is currently possible via the implementation-specific interfaces between Base Station (Node B) Element Manager and Base Station. A “remote control” mechanism decreases the costs incurred by the operator for site visits to change the tilt of the antennas manually and simplify the redeployment of antennas in a large network.”

Experience to date suggests that clusters of sites need to be adjusted between 3 to 7 times before final settings. Ensuring good signal to noise ratio for 3G site clusters is a complex task. If for some reason, the adjacent site’s coverage is not as predicted, one possible corrective measure could be to adjust the antenna pattern of a particular site. Once this ‘corrective’ measure has been taken, each adjacent site should have its performance re-tested to check for adverse effects.

Being able to adjust a cluster of cells sites simultaneously speeds up the process and avoids a sequential approach to optimising.

The solution to this problem is to make the optimisation process so easy that there is no need to compromise the final stages of optimisation and ensure that the ongoing optimisation requirement is routine and inexpensive, according to Joe Moore,  Managing Director of Sigma Wireless Technologies and one of the pioneers of the latest technology solutions — integrated Variable Electrical Tilt (iVET) antenna technology.

Network Operators are currently deploying Variable Electrical Tilt antennas to enable them to make adjustments to the tilt angle locally, either manually or by using handheld programmers or laptops. Acceptance of this technology is accelerating and operators are moving quickly to the next stage, Remote Tilt Adjustment.

The key enablers for the adoption of this technology are the availability of new antennas that facilitate ‘open-standard’ as well as the existing ‘vendor-specific’ communication protocols in the same product and the availability of both Wireless and Wide Area Network (WAN) Ethernet communication conduits, at an affordable price. These options allow Network Operators a variety of adoption strategies and control approaches. Some antenna management systems now being made available include an independent wireless option, such as the Sigma Wireless Blustream System (wireless over IP) plus an OEM integrated solution whereby management is controlled over the Operation and Maintenance system provided by their OEM suppliers.

Making remote tilt adjustment possible

Remote tilt control, requires two new enablers:
*  New Antenna technology
*  New Antenna Management Systems (AMS)

New antenna technology

Operators need to know that antennas deployed in the field are both future-proofed against changes to control software and, where a mixture of infrastructure vendors are used, that the antennas are flexible enough to work on all major control protocols. Sigma Wireless has just launched its new Multi-Protocol AQUA antenna range which is capable of operating on multiple protocols such as the AISG, Ericsson and the upcoming 3GPP standards. This latest innovation offers more options to operators and is a further enabler of the remote management of antenna line devices and playing a part in simplifying the optimisation process.

Additional to the control protocol used to make the adjustment in tilt angle, the matter of whether to follow a migration strategy from manual electrical tilt (MET) to remote electrical tilt (RET) is of key importance. The latest approach is to ensure that the antennas deployed are ‘RET capable’ from the start, instead of following the more expensive migration strategy (MET upgrade to RET) approach.

Sigma Wireless has adopted the ‘RET capable’ approach with the Tilt Controller integrated inside the antenna housing and has developed its patented integrated Variable Electrical Tilt (iVET) for superior performance and reliability. This unique approach delivers the following cost and performance benefits; lower visual impact, smaller size, elimination of field installation errors, positive adjustment controls through its closed feedback loop system. This technology is now mature and is being rolled out in earnest. Additional benefits appear at the installation programming stage, because the iVET antenna has a single identity — with all software parameters programmed in the factory making it very simple to install. As an extension of its integration strategy, Sigma Wireless has also moved on to integrating ‘third party’ amplifiers with the same benefits as described above.

The key technical design features of this product family are:
*  High levels of pattern control through the tilt range.
*  Patented iVET which ensures complete control of the pattern tilt without generating potential IMP sources.
*  Capability to be remotely controlled over dedicated Antenna Management System or the O&M system provided by major OEM network suppliers.

Antenna management system descriptions

Antenna Management Systems (AMS) can either be an integral part of the operation and maintenance facility or can be a standalone sub-system. Both solutions have the following core elements:
*  central database
*  communication link to the Node B site
*  interface to the antenna line devices (antenna and amplifier).
The decision to take a particular approach may be driven by cost, operational integration or even security aspects.

The central database is the repository of all site specific, antenna line information holding details such as serial numbers, manufacturer, technical specification and tilt/gain adjustment ranges. The central database is connected to a communication server, which manages the interrogation of site devices or the site control unit. Changes can be made from this control point which also receives updates of changes made in the field. A record of all changes is kept on the database.

The connection from the central database, stand-alone or integrated, can be set up over the internet using a wireless connection or over the Ethernet network of the Wide Area Network already in place to communicate with all radio equipment. Each site can be assigned an available internal IP address and, with this, each device is allocated a sub-address. In the case of the wireless option, each site is issued with a dynamic IP address using a standard GPRS SIM card. Security aspects of both options are to be managed within the existing IT security procedures of the Operator.

Sigma Wireless has developed a communication platform which is based upon the AISG standard and is capable of operating over Internet Protocol. The platform was taken because of its ubiquity and the prevalence of all types of standard communication tools using this technology. This approach also simplifies and makes the equipment required to manage antennas much more affordable than proprietary based software platforms. The Blustream antenna management system offers a wide variety of control options to operators and can either be integral to the OMC system or standalone from it if required.

This mode of addressing the site devices is suitable when the antenna and RET unit are fully integrated as a single device. In this instance the iVET has its communication and operational parameters pre-programmed inside the antenna, during manufacture.  With this, the communications link from the central database is direct to the required device, without the need for intermediary processing capability and thereby reducing cost. In this scenario the site equipment is simply a communication conduit — “plug and play” either using a GPRS modem and/or the existing Ethernet connection.

This solution facilitates a very simple installation process. All of the antenna parameters — including tilt range — are set during manufacture, leaving only site specific information such as site name, sector and orientation to be programmed at site. This reduces the degree of on-site interaction required and actual installation time. Once the antenna is connected to the communication port of the Blustream Node, it automatically establishes contact with the central database and updates it. Any changes made to the tilt at the site are automatically updated when the site is polled. An additional feature of this option allows Operators, when required, to restrict change access solely to the control centre.
 
Interoperability is vital for this technology to flourish. Interoperability between different antenna types, between amplifiers and antennas and between site controller or communication node and antennas, is vital. Ultimately, interoperability between site programming devices and antennas to simplify the installation process is a must.

The activity between companies has increased dramatically and the emergence of an array of affordable and inter-connectable devices is sure to see a massive uptake in the remote adjustment of antenna-line devices, this will dramatically alter the way in which mobile networks are optimised in the future and will deliver significant OPEX savings to the operator.

Hans Theler is ceo of Sicap, the Swiss company which is dedicated to developing mobile applications and network products for GSM operators. He talks to Keith Dyer about the solutions available to operators as they seek to introduce revenue-raising services in a manageable manner.

Mobile Europe: Hans, before we get into the specifics of how operators can launch and manage new services, can you give us some background on the challenges facing operators at the moment, and the needs of the market?

Hans Theler:
Well, mobile operators face a variety of challenges as they seek to boost subscriber revenues without similarly increasing their spend either on capital projects or on the cost of keeping, managing and attracting new customers.

Cutting costs, raising average revenues per user, communicating with customers and offering high value easy to use, and access, services are the typical challenges facing many operators. But operators do not have to invest in the latest bells and whistles, they can reduce costs and add value by maximising existing assets and exploiting current technologies.

Mobile Europe: Also, operators are faced with a low take up for many data services. Why do you think that is?

Hans Theler: I agree that in general operators face a relatively low take up of value added services. MMS is one example of this. A recent survey conducted by Sicap and NOP in the UK showed that 79% of 771 respondents had never sent or received a MMS. 45% said this was because they did not have a modern handset, 17% did not know how to do it and 15% were insecure about the cost. Very often this is also true for other value added services.

Supply of handsets, ease of use and information about cost are often areas that the industry misjudge when launching new services.

Mobile Europe: Given that handset supply and ease of use, certainly at the handset level, are often out of an operator’s control, what kind of things can an operator take control of to ease the process?

Hans Theler:
Customers want high service levels and easy access to attractive applications. They feel that contacting operators should be secure, reliable and above all as simple as point and click. But to take one example, given the nature of pre-paid services, it is historically difficult for mobile operators to communicate with pre-paid customers. All that has now changed thanks to UMB.

Mobile Europe: UMB is a Sicap solution, I am guessing!

Hans Theler:
Yes — of course! Developed by Sicap, UMB (USSD Menu Browsing) exploits the existing GSM standard network USSD (Unstructured Supplementary Services Data) technology to create a single, customer contact number into the operator.  UMB opens up a two-way marketing channel between operators and their pre-paid customers, making self provisioning fast, easy and cost effective. On request subscribers get not only their account balance but also a menu of services through which they can browse — so accessing new applications does become as simple as point and click. Operators can now push product and marketing information to their entire base of subscribers.

Mobile Europe: And it makes use of existing technology?

Hans Theler:
That’s the beauty of it. Operators can inform and give customers access to services and new applications throughout their networks from one free call. By exploiting a technology already incorporated into all GSM phones, Sicap’s UMB gives access to all existing GSM customers wherever they may be.

Mobile Europe: Another existing technology that many feel is under-exploited is the SIM card. There seem to be a host of unexploited applications available to the operator through existing SIMs.

Hans Theler:
The (U)SIM card’s properties as a tamper-proof device and as a unified storage facility for secure information, as well as its ability to access functions in the mobile handset and the network in a standardised and future-proof way, makes it a key component. The (U)SIM is part of
the operator’s network and as such it holds vital information that must be managed and provisioned.

The (U)SIM is the only linkage point between the network operator and the subscriber, thus making it imperative for the operator to have control over which networks their subscribers roam onto and to manage the subscriber’s access to VAS via SIM based menus such as SIM Tool Kit.

We have seen the mobile devices themselves evolve from “dumb” terminals with basic telephony functionality into sophisticated smart phones with data, internet, and multimedia capabilities. In order to ensure usage of these advanced data-centric services, operators need to have the device settings automatically configured in order for subscribers to be able to use these advanced services. As (U)SIM cards continue to evolve with more memory capacity and functionality such as java applets for security, it will continue to be an important part of an operator’s network. Over-The-Air then becomes essential in managing content on the SIM such as Java applets, PLMN roaming lists, STK menus and the subscribers’ personal information.

For the subscriber, (U)SIM is a personal, portable gateway to new services; for the operator, it’s the key to security and differentiating ergonomics in the world of 3G mobile services.

Mobile Europe: Over the air configuration is not new, but there is a sense that the services it can enable are still under-appreciated.
Hans Theler:
Sure, the SIM holds the user identity number and authentication key and algorithm and has proved itself to be a potent weapon in network security. But this is only the tip of the iceberg in regards to SIM card potential. Since it’s the card rather than the terminal that enables network access, feature access and billing, the user is immediately on-line.

For mobile operators, the main challenge these days is to be able to manage and control the (U)SIMs that are out in the field, being used by subscribers.

Operators often need to update content on the SIM cards such as PLMN roaming lists whenever a new roaming agreement is made. Fixed Dialling Numbers (FDN) and Abbreviated Dialling Numbers (ADN) need to be updated whenever service numbers change. Java applets on SIM cards also have to be managed for secure m-commerce and m-banking applications. Updating and configuring Java based SIM Tool Kit menus is also essential whenever new value added services are introduced to subscribers.

Mobile Europe: And OTA is best for this?

Hans Theler:
As devices become more technologically advanced with various features such as internet browsing and multimedia capabilities, these settings become increasingly complex for users to configure, and in turn will discourage them from adopting these new services.

Operators will then lose revenues, customer care costs and churn rates will increase, causing serious delays in mobile services adoption.

With OTA device management, operators can help users to start using new services, as well as modify the configuration of existing ones with a minimum of effort. Settings such as GPRS, WAP, MMS, push-to-talk, email and internet browsing all need device-specific configuration settings, making it difficult to configure them manually. By simplifying configuration, device management offers substantial benefits for all members of the mobile value chain, from the handset manufacturer, to the service provider, all the way to the network operator. Most mobile users have limited technical interest or skill to configure an advance mobile device. Take MMS as an example; One of the reasons MMS has had difficulty in reaching mass market adoption is that the average mobile user is not aware that they need to configure their handsets in order to use the service. Mobile users expect services like MMS to be as readily available as making a call or sending an SMS.

But recalling SIM cards for content provisioning is not a viable option as it is a very time-consuming and expensive exercise to do.

So the OTA platform is a very effective logistical solution for the remote management of post-issued SIM cards. The secure management of GSM files and applets on the SIM is OTA’s greatest advantage, and due to the secure download aspect the network operator is the sole master of the SIM cards. OTA allows the operator to extend the SIM card life cycle and speed up the time to market: of new services. Operators no longer need to wait for the card’s renewal to update GSM files or to offer new services. As a result, new roaming agreements and new seasonal or events services can be always offered. In addition to new service delivery and content update, the OTA platform eases replacing stolen SIMs with subscriber’s details such as phonebook contacts, stored SMS, and applets.

Mobile Europe: You mentioned roaming management. Remote SIM configuration is very important in this area, I believe.

Hans Theler:
The PLMN list on the SIM card contains the parameters that control which network the subscriber will roam onto when they are outside of their home network. By being able to control which network your subscribers roam onto, roaming management allows operators to keep lucrative roaming revenues within the group or within a partner network alliance. Roaming Management also gives an operator more negotiating power when making roaming deals with foreign network operators.

Another benefit is that it can support special rates for particular customer segments such as corporate customers roaming in an international VPN environment. PLMN lists are usually embedded at the first stages before an operator receives their batch of SIM cards. New roaming agreements and international operator alliances are constantly changing; therefore operators need a tool to
update and manage their whole SIM card base efficiently and remotely without causing inconveniences to subscribers.

Mobile Europe: And what role do you see for SIM Tool Kit (STK) in managing applications, in alliance with OTA ?

Hans Theler:
Utilising STK helps operators save on high marketing costs; traditionally it takes a lot of effort educating subscribers about the various short numbers and keywords they need to know to use the different VAS. With STK, since all services become part of the handset menu, operators need less marketing effort to educate their subscribers on how to order services such as information, logos, ring tones, games and using mobile banking applications.

Furthermore since the VAS menu is part of the overall handset menu, the operator can reach the majority of its subscribers and not just the ones with a WAP-enabled handset and configured WAP settings. Again, an OTA system allows operators to update STK menus with new service offerings and also offers the possibility for subscribers to customise their menus to suit their particular needs via a Web interface.

Operators can remotely provision STK menus by sending binary SMS or using the GPRS bearer to download new content on the SIM card. Sicap’s OTA is future proof because it supports Bearer Independent Protocol (BIP) for data packet-based download, in 2.5 and 3G networks. With STK, operators could offer various revenue generating services such as: information, logos, ring tones, java games, customer self-care, and banking services. As a result of these offerings the operator benefits from; increased ARPU, reduced customer churn, increase customer loyalty and a differentiated service offering for their subscribers.

Mobile Europe: Thank you.

LTE has two versions; one for paired spectrum (FDD) and the other for unpaired spectrum (TDD). Designed for use in unpaired spectrum, TD-LTE is set to be deployed widely around the world, says the pair.

At an event hosted by China Mobile in Shanghai, Ericsson and ST-Ericsson demonstrated their complete TD-LTE solution for the first time. Using an USB dongle embedded with ST-Ericsson’s TD-LTE chipset, the companies showcased ‘super-fast’ mobile broadband applications, such as video-on-demand (VOD) and video streaming with a live camera.

Mats H Olsson, President of Ericsson China and North East Asia said: “The successful demonstration today reflects not only Ericsson’s undisputed technology leadership in the LTE domain, but also our unwavering commitment to the development of TD-LTE in China and elsewhere in the world. We will make every effort to support China Mobile in bringing revolutionary mobile broadband experiences to tens of millions of Chinese consumers in the near future.”

“Drawing on six years of LTE research and development, today’s demonstration underlines ST-Ericsson’s position as a frontrunner in the rollout of the next-generation of mobile broadband platforms,” said Magnus Hansson, Senior Vice President and head of LTE and 3G Modem Solutions at ST-Ericsson. “Through our cooperation with China Mobile and Ericsson, devices based on our chipsets will soon enable people to enjoy the many benefits of super-fast mobile broadband.”

ST-Ericsson is said to have been the first in the world to demonstrate a handheld LTE device and to achieve LTE and HSPA mobility with a multimode device. Available next year, ST-Ericsson’s next generation modem will support both versions of LTE, in addition to TD-SCDMA and HSPA+/EDGE.

ST-Ericsson and Ericsson’s combined offering is claimed to be the only complete end-to-end TD-LTE solution in the industry.