Verizon Wireless Sells 700 MHz AWS Spectrum to AT&T

Verizon Wireless announced deals to sell some of its remaining lower 700 MHz band spectrum licenses. in certain western markets.  The deals include:

• the sale of 39 lower 700 MHz B Block licenses to AT&T in exchange for a payment of $1.9 billion, and the transfer by AT&T to Verizon Wireless of AWS (10 MHz) licenses in Los Angeles, Phoenix, Fresno, Portland, Oregon and other smaller market.
  
• the sale of lower 700 MHz B Block licenses covering the Charlotte, Greensboro and Raleigh-Durham markets in North Carolina to Grain Management, a Sarasota, Florida-based private equity firm that invests in the telecommunications sector, in exchange for a payment of $189 million.
  
• Verizon Wireless will lease from Grain Management an AWS license covering Dallas, Texas, which Grain is acquiring from AT&T.

Previously, Verizon Wireless has sold or agreed to sell 35 of its 77 lower B block licenses to 10 different entities, including transactions that were initiated prior to the sale process. The company also noted that its LTE in Rural America program has signed leases covering the upper 700 MHz C block spectrum with 20 rural operators to jumpstart the delivery of 4G LTE in rural areas.

http://news.verizonwireless.com/news/2013/01/verizon-wireless-spectrum-license-transactions.html

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Tekelec Supplies Policy Server for KT's LTE and 3G Nets

KT has selected Tekelec's Policy Server (PCRF) for its LTE and 3G networks.

Tekelec's Policy Server will support KT’s new Voice over LTE (VoLTE) offering, LTE data plans and Rich Communication Suite (RCS) service.  It will also be used for daily and monthly quota tracking for a variety of services, including voice, Internet usage, file transfer, instant messaging, and video telephony. The daily tracking will give KT new flexibility to offer per diem packages and service options across 3G, LTE and RCS services.

"KT’s new LTE services enrich the subscriber experience and give customers new advanced options for communications services and mobile data applications,” said Houck Reed, vice president of product management and marketing at Tekelec. "As the brain of LTE and 3G networks, Tekelec’s Policy Server will enable KT to take advantage of new business models that extend policy enforcement to the mobile device and offer policy as a service to over-the-top application providers.”

http://www.tekelec.com

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Anite Validates TD-LTE/TD-SCDMA Inter-RAT Tests

Anite has validated the first GCF (Global Certification Forum) TD-LTE/TD-SCDMA Inter-RAT (Inter-Radio Access Technology) test cases.

The company now supports all of the GCF LTE protocol test requirements for TD-LTE mobile operators.

Anite said its TD-LTE/TD-SCDMA Inter-RAT conformance test cases enable chipset manufacturers and handset vendors to develop and certify dual-mode TD-LTE/TD-SCDMA devices, thus accelerating the launch of dual technology (TD-LTE and TD-SCDMA) handsets in China.

http://www.anite.com

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Ericsson Opens Design Center in Malaga, Spain

Ericsson inaugurated a  Network Design & Optimization center in Malaga, Spain.  The new facility will help operators ensure that their networks can handle the high level of data traffic brought on by the the smartphone uptake while maintaining service quality and end user experience.

http://www.ericsson.com

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Digicel Cuts Base Station Energy Usage 23% with eVolution

Digicel Jamaica has slashed energy consumption on its cellular base stations by using an automated software optimization solution from eVolution Networks.  The software deactivates base stations during low traffic demand. The companies estimates that Digicel is saving up to US$1.4 million annually in energy costs, realizing a 23% reduction in RAN energy costs.

eVolution is a start-up based in Israel. The company says its flagship product, Smart Energy Solution (SES), fits seamlessly into any multi-vendor/technology cellular network.able to significantly increase savings using SES.

“eVolution’s SES is the most mature and cost optimized energy saving platform on the market. It provides a valuable solution for cutting energy across our base stations and best positions us to capitalize on the shift to a fully green network,” said Stephen Curran, Network Design Director for Digicel Group.  “Having successfully completed the deployment of eVolution’s solution across most of our base stations, we are now ready to demonstrate the full capabilities and unique advantages of the solution across our 30 other markets across the globe.”

Digicel is the leading mobile telecom operator in the Caribbean, Central American and Pacific regions.

http://www.evolution-networks.com/digicel-deploys-ses/

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