A significant number of mobile operators will upgrade from HSDPA to HSPA+ technology as an interim stop gap before migrating to LTE, according to an EJL Wireless Research report.
“Given the economic uncertainty through 2009 and 2010, it is clear that mobile operators will upgrade to HSPA+ technology during 2009-2011. Furthermore, the drive for higher spectral efficiency will mean that mobile operators need to begin planning on CAPEX for 900 MHz reframing during this timeframe,” said Earl Lum, EJL’s founder and president, in a recent press release to announce the report’s findings.
The report speculates that consumers will see a significant improvement in the mobile broadband experience, citing the capability of HSPA+ to deliver UMTS downlink speeds of up to 21 Mbps.
The study also offers perspective on the industry’s move to 4G networks like WiMAX and LTE. The two technologies have been vying for market position as carriers consider a future with more demand for bandwidth. Smartphones and the data plans that go with them are driving the need for higher-capacity 4G networks. The move to HSPA+ could ease some of the growing pains associated with the LTE rollout.
The EJL report includes detailed analysis for the following mobile equipment vendors: Alcatel-Lucent, Ericsson, Huawei Technologies, NEC, Nokia Siemens Networks and ZTE.