Telecom Lead Europe: ICT solutions major Alcatel-Lucent
is set to cash in on an innovative technology – Metro Cell Express – by
deploying it in railway stations, shopping malls and sports stadiums.
The break through system is expected to assist in
reducing lost calls, data interruptions and variable connectivity.
Alcatel-Lucent is planning to offer a breakthrough system
to network operators combining its lightRadio metro portfolio; its position in
small cell deployments; its installation experience in cities like New York,
Paris and Shanghai; and its position in fixed line and backhaul networks.
A Metro network of small cells, utilizing
Alcatel-Lucent’s lightRadio system, will ease network congestion problems in
hotspots for customers who want to use latest HD Camera phones, tablets and
other wireless devices to upload a photo of a sports match to Facebook, or
download a film to watch on a commute.
Under the proposed deployment, Alcatel-Lucent would
assume the challenges of building networks in these tough urban
environments. Operation of the metro network would be transferred to
network providers only once the metro network has been installed, fully integrated,
and shown to be delivering the technical performance required to ensure that
customers are delighted with their wireless service.
This Build, Operations Assist, and Transfer (B-O-T)
solution is the first time a managed services has been developed and offered
specifically for Metro Cell Networks.
Alcatel-Lucent forecasts that demands on networks could
increase by 25 times in the next 5 years and as customer adoption of
broadband-capable devices continues to rise. This poses a risk that the
wireless experience will decline and eventually become unusable in hotspots
unless operators accelerate towards a much denser type of wireless metro
network.
Metro networks are a fairly recent concept, and pose
significant potential operational risks and costs for operators. They
require huge numbers of small wireless radios to be mounted in unfamiliar
locations like lampposts; they demand high availability to power supply and
quality fixed-line connections for backhaul; they raise potential new
regulatory and municipal concerns; and citizens must be persuaded to accept a
large number of unfamiliar devices in their domestic or work environment.
Alcatel-Lucent’s lightRadio Metro Cell Express solution
uses our wealth of expertise to take the pain out of building metro networks
for operators, and more importantly, to enable customers to enjoy the benefits
of real mobile broadband anytime, anywhere with consistently high
quality. Our solution will bring massive capacity to urban environments,
but is also highly applicable for delivering coverage in rural locations as
well. We see this as a real game changer for operators,” said Mike
Schabel Vice President of Alcatel-Lucent’s Wireless lightRadio Metro.
