Wednesday, July 9, 2014

Qualcomm Supports Docomo's VoLTE Launch in Japan

Qualcomm Technologies announced that NTT Docomo's newly launched VoLTE service in Japan is leveraging a VoLTE solution based on its Snapdragon 800 processor with a fully featured multimode integrated VoLTE modem and IMS software.  The Qualcomm implementation supports SMS, HD voice, video telephony (VT), and single radio voice call continuity (SRVCC), which can be found in a wide variety of smartphone devices available on NTT DOCOMO’s network.

The VoLTE solution is also designed to deliver higher quality voice calls, faster voice connections with low call set-up times and simultaneous voice and Cat4 data rates up to 150 Mbps over LTE.

“We are pleased to work with NTT DOCOMO on the first large-scale commercial VoLTE launch, which is designed to provide their customers in Japan with faster, more consistent user experiences,” said Serge Willenegger, vice president of product management, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. “From improved voice call quality to faster data access, users will recognize the many benefits provided by the Snapdragon 800 processor VoLTE solution.”

The Snapdragon 800 processor supports all key VoLTE features such as CDRX, RoHC, SPS, and TTI Bundling that are designed to improve call quality and lower power consumption. The Qualcomm Technologies modem centric IMS solution is designed to adapt to radio conditions for superior mobility performance, lower power consumption and optimized call latency. This enables wider-bandwidth, high-quality HD voice and low latency voice and video telephony. The VoLTE solution has been performance optimized for diverse radio conditions and its Single Radio Voice Call Continuity (SRVCC) is designed to support a smooth handover from LTE to 3G without dropping voice calls. It also incorporates robust inter-technology working with 2G, 3G and WLAN, all of which has been extensively tested across major infrastructure vendors and operator networks.

“NTT DOCOMO has launched the leading edge voice and video service, allowing VoLTE service to be available commercially nationwide in Japan as of June” said Kazuaki Terunuma, vice president and managing director of communication device development department, NTT DOCOMO, INC. “We have successfully worked with Qualcomm Technologies in LTE technology for many years, which is why we chose to work with them for VoLTE technology as well. With this comprehensive, stable and extensively tested chipset with IMS software solution, we are able to provide leading edge VoLTE services on mobile phones from several manufacturers to our customers.”

http://www.qualcomm.com/

  • In May 2014, NTT DOCOMO confirmed the pending launch of Voice-over-LTE (VoLTE) in its home market in late June -- the first such launch in Japan.
    Four smartphones and two tablets in DOCOMO's summer lineup will become compatible with the new service after a software update scheduled in or after late June.

    The carrier said its VoLTE service will newly enable users to receive Area Mail disaster-information notifications while making VoLTE voice/video calls. Also, users will be able to experience data rate of up to 150 Mbps during VoLTE voice calls.

    DOCOMO's new VoLTE service will require a subscription to Xi. Existing Xi billing plans, packet flat-rate services, discounts and dialing charges will be applicable to VoLTE voice calls, including the new Kake-hodai & Pake-aeru billing plans for flat-rate voice and data, as well as data sharing with family members.

    Packet communication charges for VoLTE video calls will be offered free of charge until September 2015, after which video calls will incur both voice and packet communication charges.
    https://www.nttdocomo.co.jp/english/info/media_center/pr/2014/0514_00.html