Michael Lai sees unpaired spectrum as better option for coping with rising upload traffic; urges telcos to \'challenge your vendors\'.

Packet One chief executive Michael Lai on Thursday shared some of the reasons why the Malaysian WiMAX operator is making the switch to TD-LTE.

"With unpaired spectrum you can dimension your uplink and your downlink to how you need it," he told the audience during CommunicAsia in Singapore. Lai said this capability is becoming increasingly important as the volume of user-generated content grows.

"The downlink/uplink [data traffic] ratio [on Packet One\'s WiMAX network] is currently around three-to-one," he said. "It used to be more like five-to-one, but we\'re seeing more consumer-generated content."

Packet One announced in April plans to switch from WiMAX to TD-LTE, with field trials scheduled for the end of 2011.

Lai said that TD-LTE tests it carried out revealed peak download speeds of 130 Mbps, compared to the 45 Mbps currently achievable on its WiMAX network.

Packet One plans to roll out TD-LTE alongside its existing WiMAX network, since the latter currently has a broader ecosystem of supported devices.

When the time comes for the company to procure infrastructure for the new network, vendors should not expect an easy ride.

"Always challenge your vendors if what they\'re saying does\'t sound right," said Lai.

When Packet One launched in August 2008, Lai explained that the company had pursued a single-vendor strategy, which did\'t go as well as he intended.

"The network rollout was painful," he said, without naming the culprit.

"Vendors have a team of lawyers that is bigger than your whole company… know what you\'re getting into and manage the living daylights out of it," he added.

Packet One had 305,000 subscribers at the end of the first quarter of 2011, and took a 12% share of total net additions.

"In areas where we have network coverage, we took a 24% share of new net additions," said Lai.