Over the last 10 years, UMTS networks have proliferated in many countries. Today’s surge in devices and social media use has seen UMTS network traffic skyrocket.
By Wang Mingxuan
Operators have seen their growth increasingly hindered by a number of practical issues, including the explosive rise in data, limited spectrum, and insufficient number of sites. Intense market competition has forced operators to consider approaches that can maximize returns from existing assets like spectrum and sites. The UMTS+ solution was developed in response to these requirements in this new era. Encompassing Spectrum+, Site+, Subscriber+, and Experience+, the UMTS+ solution enables operators to extract value from existing assets to maximize ROI and boost revenues.
Due to large user numbers and the late development of MBB, a huge latent demand for MBB exists, promising enormous potential demographic dividends for operators. According to GSMA, the number of UMTS users will grow to nearly 4 billion between 2016 and 2020, a threefold increase. And most of these users will be in developing countries.
The rising popularity of new social media applications like Instagram and Snapchat has seen users departing more established brands like Facebook and Twitter in developed markets. This has spurred Facebook and its like to invest in emerging markets. However, today’s Facebook is more than the simple message-based social media platform it once was, incorporating new types of media such as video ads and live broadcasts.
This has led to a surge in network traffic in developing nations. According to Huawei's projections, MBB traffic in these markets will see a sevenfold increase over 2016 levels by 2020.
Ubiquity with Spectrum+
Spectrum scarcity has become a major challenge for developing nations. According to Huawei's statistics on spectrum resources around the world, developing countries can only provision half as much spectrum as developed ones. Moreover, 42 percent of the world's operators have only 8 MHz of spectrum at the golden 900 MHz spectrum. Operators urgently need new tech that can enhance spectrum utilization to help them increase ROI.
The low-frequency 900 MHz band is crucial for MBB broad coverage. Traditional technology requires at least 7.4 MHz of spectrum for 2G and 3G to coexist on the 900 MHz band. Huawei's Spectrum+ solution utilizes powerful narrowband and broadband interference suppression technology to enable 2G and 3G subscribers to coexist on a minimum of 5 MHz of spectrum. The solution boosts MBB capacity by 40 percent or more on the same amount of spectrum, meaning that operators never have to choose between 2G and 3G.
Spectrum+ enables operators to build ubiquitous MBB networks.
Agile sites with Site+
Globally, there are on average 1,000 sites per 1 million people, but in some developing countries this number drops to as low as 100 to 200. Indeed, the biggest obstacle to expanding MBB coverage in emerging markets is the lack of sites and difficulty of deploying new ones. Huawei's Site+ solution was designed with such situations in mind, applying sector splitting technology to maximize single site efficiency. The split antenna multi-sector solution can increase the number of sectors in a cell from three to six, or even nine, boosting capacity by up to 2.2 times. With 3D-sector technology, capacity can be enhanced by as much as 4 times, greatly increasing single site capacity. The solution has been deployed by over 70 operators around the globe, boosting UMTS network capacity by an average of 70 percent.
The Site+ solution also includes agile site addition capabilities to facilitate new site deployment, reduce equipment and labor costs, and simplify site acquisition. The solution offers a number of different types of sites, including street light and underground sites. Street light sites are installed inside the existing municipal structures. Underground sites make use of underground-type APM30 cabinets that contain equipment, including the RRU RF module, power supply, and batteries.
By using the underground site solution, VIVO Brazil was able to obtain a site construction license in a month, 95 percent quicker than normal. It was then able to complete site deployment in 15 days, 75 percent faster than normal. Site construction costs and site rental fees were halved. The underground cabinet solution helped VIVO improve its network capacity by more than 30 percent, without negatively impacting the visual environment around the Olympic sites in Brazil.
Demographic dividends with User+
At Mobile World Congress 2016, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg called for the development of network infrastructure to bring the Internet to more people, showing his awareness of the vast potential of developing countries. As of 2016, 40 percent of people in emerging markets are still unconnected to the Internet, with the vast majority still on 2G networks. Quickly migrating 2G subscribers to MBB networks would increase operators' demographic dividends.
Huawei's User+ solution uses visualization tools to identify the high-value customers that operators should prioritize for migration. Subscribers who consume large amounts of data every month, even on 2G networks, have demonstrated a willingness to use MBB. Another type of potential MBB subscribers are those using 3G handsets on 2G networks. With reasonable tariffs, this type of customers will also quickly migrate to 3G.
Several operators have adopted the User+ solution with great success. Thailand AIS completed the migration of 5 million 2G subscribers to 3G in five months using a subscriber migration strategy with four main measures: 1) Network level: increased coverage in areas of poor coverage and reduced 3G subscriber fallback; 2) Flexible planning: set different plans for different user groups to appeal to more subscribers. 3) Precise user migration: employed telephone consultants or over-the-air technology to migrate subscribers using smart devices. 4) Economical MBB terminals: worked with vendor partners to launch low-cost smartphones.
The entire migration process went without a hitch. A survey showed 81 percent of subscribers enjoyed an improved 3G network experience post-migration, and 97 percent were satisfied with the migration process.
HD and more with Experience+"
As iMAX cinemas show, users will pay for great quality. Similarly, operators are switching focus from KPIs to user-oriented KQIs. A good network today is not simply one that lets subscribers connect or doesn’t drop calls; it must also be able to deliver a great voice and data experience, including HD voice and video.
Immersive HD voice
In developing countries, up to 80 percent of operator income still comes from voice services. However, with the rise of OTT apps, they aren’t the only choice. Moreover, apps are available that test network quality, while independent testing organizations and government bodies also regularly test network quality, with voice quality being the most important metric.
Huawei's Experience+ solution leverages the 3G wideband AMR codec, together with "crystal-clear voice seamless coverage" and "crystal-clear deep coverage" software capabilities, providing subscribers with an MOS 4.0 immersive HD voice experience. In Switzerland, the operator Sunrise was ranked first in voice in 2015 by an independent Swiss authority, up from third three years earlier. It achieved this by quickly improving its network capability with the HD voice solution.
1080p HD for growth
Operators are already switching their focus to video services. Even in developing countries, data traffic from video services is surging. In Egypt, for example, traffic from video services grew from 21.5 percent to 30 percent in the span of a year. Huawei predicts that video services will account for over 50 percent of data traffic in emerging markets by 2020. Boosting video service experience will help operators increase the experience of their subscribers and raise their brand equity for high-end subscribers.
A common misconception is that HD video requires super high rates. With Dual-Cell High Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) or Dual-Band (DB) HSDPA, 3G peak rates can hit 42 Mbps, which easily satisfy 720p and even 1080p HD video requirements. The H.265 video standard halves the required speed for HD video, enabling HD videos to be streamed over 3G networks without difficulty.
Peak rates aren’t the only factor that impact HD experience for users. Video experience at cell edges is also the key to user satisfaction. A lack of site coordination capabilities in traditional site tech can lead to poor user experience at cell edges, and in particular at site edges. In the 3GPP, the X2 interface is a 4G element for communication between eNodeB base stations. In the UMTS+ solution, the technology is used between two 3G NodeB base stations. The UX2 interface supports cross-site DB HSDPA between two NodeB sites and upstream COMP, greatly increasing upstream and downstream throughput, enabling users at cell edges to enjoy 720p and 1080p HD video experiences.
With a huge demographic dividend still up for grabs, UMTS+ represents a milestone in the 3G MBB era. UMTS+ help operators maximize the value of existing network assets and boost revenues, and builds networks to support MBB 2020 for all. Then, everyone will be connected and will enjoy a better MBB experience wherever they are.
