SK Telecom engineers test the company’s LTE network reception at the venue of the Expo 2012 Yeosu at the southwestern port city. Courtesy of SK Telecom

By Cho Mu-hyun

SK Telecom, the country’s biggest mobile phone operator, is seeking to use the upcoming expo in the southwestern port city of Yeosu as a stage to boast its expanding long-term evolution (LTE) network.

The company declared the venue for Expo 2012 Yeosu as a ``special LTE area’’ Sunday, revealing plans to showcase advanced communications technologies and mobile devices to visitors and accelerating its efforts to complete a nationwide network for LTE, the standard technology for fourth-generation (4G) communications.

``We are determined to provide excellent services for the expected 8 million visitors worldwide by continuous implementation of LTE and 3G coverage in the vicinity of Yeosu,’’ the company said in a statement.

SK Telecom unveiled that it has completed providing LTE coverage for major expressways, national roads and various other transportation routes and systems expected to be used during the expo. The company is also strengthening its 3G coverage and boosting servers to respond to the expected rise in mobile data traffic during the event.

In the area of the actual exhibition, the company has installed 29 LTE stations and 82 remote radio units (RRU), while adding 30 stations and 112 repeaters for its 3G network.

SK has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with exhibition organizers to provide the best wired and wireless services whiling handing out around a thousand tablet computers and smartphones to organizers and volunteers.

To connect LAN and wireless platforms, SK is to offer “W-Zone” and “L-Zone” that allow cross connection between the two.

In collaboration with the organizers, SK is to provide free WiFi for visitors to exhibition facilities and halls. To avoid possible frequency disturbance due to multiple APs being set by other telecommunications service providers, the network within the exhibition halls was built exclusively by SK Telecom.

During the actual “The Living Ocean and Cost” themed expo from May 12 to Aug. 12, SK will position mobile stations for the opening and closing ceremony in case of a data traffic explosion. SK is to increase the number of its personnel have up to 22 data experts to observe the network and standby for possible emergencies.

“As SK Telecom is the only provider (of networks) for the exhibition halls among the telecommunications companies, we are well prepared for visitors to use their mobile devicess easily,” said the head of SK’s network division Kwon Hyuk-sang. “We expect a vast number of foreigners, so we will show them the excellence of Korean network infrastructure.”