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LG Electronics mobile chief
Ahn Seung-kwon |
By Kim Yoo-chul
Staff Reporter
South Korea's LG Electronics said Tuesday that it has successfully demonstrated a data transmission or "handover" between a long-term evolution (LTE) network and a third-generation CDMA network.
LG, the world's third biggest mobile phone manufacturer after Nokia and Samsung Electronics, said it showed that online activities such as video downloading and web-surfing could be maintained when a mobile data user moves between LTE and CDMA coverage zones.
``The joint test with Canada's Nortel explains standards-compliant CDMA-LTE inter-working. This also enables idle mode handover between CDMA and LTE and active mode handover from LTE to CDMA leveraging device assisted, network controlled functionality,'' a company spokesman said.
Officials and analysts say the successful trial will help the North America-based CDMA camp to jump into LTE mobile networks.
``The CDMA camp suffers from a lack of alternative wireless technology for the preparation of fourth-generation (4G). For CDMA players, shifting to Europe-based LTE technology requires huge investment. LG's handover technology will accelerate the efforts by the CDMA camp toward LTE-based 4G mobile technology,'' Prudential Investment said.
Competition to provide infrastructure for the emerging ultra high-speed LTE is heating up in the wake of last week's announcement by the network pacesetter, Verizon Wireless. Ericsson, Alcatel-Lucent, Starent and Nokia Siemens were listed as key suppliers for the network, which is scheduled to have its commercial launch next year.
LTE's success depends largely on how major phone makers will embrace the mainstream WiMAX bandwagon, and whether WiMAX lives up to its promises and if LTE materializes on time.
More global wireless carriers, including China Unicomand NTT Docomo, are moving to the LTE camp.
Last year, LG unveiled modem chipsets for its fourth-generation mobile platform.
yckim@koreatimes.co.kr
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