As a sub-group of GTI, the 3.5 GHz Interest Group that always promotes LTE TDD spectrum bands 42 and 43, recently held its sixth roundtable at the 2013 Mobile World Congress. Around 100 top executives from 40 companies, including operators, regulators, and chipset manufacturers came together for the roundtable to discuss significant industry developments concerning the widespread adoption of core LTE TDD bands 42 and 43.

Representatives from the following companies and organizations were in attendance: SoftBank, KDDI, Bollore, DIRECTV, TELUS, Poland Sprint, Linkem, 2K Telecom, AzQtel, Industry Canada, GSMA, GSA, TAG, WiMAX Forum, TDIA, Qualcomm, HiSilicon, Sequans, Fujitsu Semiconductors, Altair, MitraStar, Gemtek and GCF among others.

The sixth roundtable was hosted by the Interest Group Chairman UKB CTO Philip Marnick. Three Interest Group work groups (network, terminal and information sharing) had been operating for more than six months prior to the roundtable, and at the meeting the Chairman and Secretary highlighted work group achievements made during 2012; objectives for 2013 were also agreed upon.

3.5 GHz equipment vendor Huawei highlighted its 3.5 GHz roadmap and latest 3.5 GHz solutions, and confirmed that a true end-to-end commercial solution already exists for LTE TDD for bands 42 and 43. At the roundtable, attendees were also shown nearly 20 types of 3.5 GHz LTE TDD multi-mode terminals, including indoor CPE, outdoor CPE, MiFi and USB dongles, most of which also support multiple bands for roaming on other LTE and 3G bands.

Meeting participants discussed how to improve network performance and coverage, how to develop MBB, WBB and wireless backhaul for 3.5 GHz, as well as new technologies like LTE-Hi and Carrier Aggregation for LTE-A. The Interest Group reached a consensus that LTE TDD has been defined as the main evolution choice for WiMAX, and that many 3.5 GHz WiMAX networks in 2013 will evolve to LTE TDD for better user experience.

The design and price points of 3.5 GHz LTE TDD terminals were widely discussed. Consensus was reached that the availability of low-cost terminals would greatly promote further rapid development of the 3.5 GHz industry, and that working together on purchasing would be an effective approach to drive device commercial viability. Numerous operators reached an agreement to work together to increase the global production of 3.5 GHz LTE TDD devices.

Global harmonization of 3.5 GHz spectrum was emphasized to ensure the sharing of the same ecosystem, particularly for chipsets and terminals. The Interest Group put forward the proposition that 3.5 GHz spectrum should be released in at least 40 MHz blocks to realize the inherent deployment advantages of 3.5 GHz wide bandwidth. Numerous operators and industry partners volunteered to contribute 3.5 GHz market development white paper concerning business models and devices, which is scheduled to be released by mid-2013.

The 3.5 GHz Interest Group was formally established in June 2012 in Hangzhou, China. British operator UK Broadband (UKB) was elected as first Chairman and Huawei was elected as first Secretary. Membership of the Interest Group has rapidly expanded to include members from every continent. Since its founding, the 3.5 GHz Interest group has helped established large bandwidth bands 42 and 43 as core LTE TDD bands due to their ability to satisfy significant increases in data traffic demands. The Interest Group has also helped drive the continuing development of network infrastructure and the commercial viability of chipsets and devices. Many operators are now deploying the bands to provide mobile and fixed wireless LTE TDD services.

Speaking after the event, Philip, said: “Since our first group meeting at MWC last year, we have seen great progress in the development of the 3.5 GHz ecosystem, including new network equipment, devices and additional operators around the world planning deployments. 2013 will be an exciting year with additional commercial launches and more consumers benefitting from mobile and fixed wireless services using 3.5 GHz LTE TDD technologies.”