ZTE partners with SingTel to run LTE trials

NEW DELHI, INDIA: ZTE Corporation (ZTE), a provider of telecommunications equipment and network solutions, today announced that it will collaborate with SingTel to carry out LTE trials in the Philippines market.

The two companies also agreed to work on long-term planning for LTE network infrastructure as well as strategic management of the network. LTE is forecasted to become the dominant 4G technology for CDMA and GSM/UMTS carriers, said a press release.

Under the agreement, the trial is scheduled to run for six to nine months starting early 2010 in order to meet the strong local market needs for broadband and high-speed network access.

ZTE has been awarded LTE commercial contracts by different operators worldwide including Telstra’s CSL, Telefonica, SingTel and China Mobile, securing a total of 10 LTE contract wins and/or trials to date.

According to a recent IDC report, Asia-Pacific region will have 43.6 million High-Speed Packet Access (HSPA) connections by the end of 2009 that will drive the adoption of LTE technology.

SingTel is the second-largest operator in the Asia Pacific region in total number of subscribers, closely follows the world’s largest operator, China Mobile, claimed the release. In July 2009, ZTE inked a contract with Telkomsel to help it build its GSM/UMTS network in Indonesia. Telkomsel is the biggest telecom operator in Indonesia, holding 50 per cent market share in the local market. The company is jointly owned by SingTel and Telkom of Indonesia.