4G rollout to double the number of internet users: Huawei
China's leading ICT solution provider Huawei yesterday said the deployment of the fourth generation of mobile data technology could quickly double the number of mobile internet users in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh is ready for LTE, commonly marketed as 4G or LTE (long-term evolution), which is a standard for wireless communication of high-speed data for mobile phones and data terminals.
"In Bangladesh, the convergence of 2G and 3G with LTE would generate a lot of employment by enhancing economic activities," Bob Cai, president of Huawei LTT FDD Network, said at its Southeast Asia LTE summit in Bangkok.
Showcasing its LTE TDD, small cell and antenna and IBS products at yesterday's summit, Huawei demonstrated how the deployment of these technologies impact the networks and maximise spectrum efficiency in the region.
"To address the increasing growth in data traffic and rising demand for mobile broadband coverage, operators in Southeast Asia have been looking into ways to adopt advanced wireless network solutions and LTE technologies," David Sun, president and chief executive officer of Huawei Southeast Asia region, said in his welcome speech.
The challenges remain in terms of LTE deployment costs, subscriber attraction, brand awareness, and product management, Huawei said in a statement.
Representatives from Thailand's National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission, GSMA Asia, Global Mobile Suppliers Association and Qualcomm, and leading global operators and service providers, including Spark NZ and HKT, attended the programme.
Among the 54 commercial LTE TDD networks, Huawei supported 40 in 26 countries, including China, Japan, India, UK, Italy, Canada, Brazil, Saudi Arabia and South Africa.
LTE has become the fastest developing mobile communications technology ever, with Asia Pacific accounting for 47 percent of LTE connections. The top LTE markets are: USA, China, Japan, South Korea and the UK.
India is going to launch LTE this year with Reliance Jio.
Only 18 percent of the population is using internet in Bangladesh, even though official data shows almost double the number of internet connections currently active, according to industry insiders.
More than 44.6 million internet connections are active, but there were just 28 million unique users as of March.
Internet data consumption stands at 69 gigabits per second (Gbps) as of December 2014, against just 2.33 Gbps recorded at the end of 2008.
Around 82 percent of the population is yet to experience the internet, and the World Bank ranks Bangladesh at 137 out of 146 countries in its Knowledge Economy Index.
ICT products of Huawei are used in more than 170 countries and regions and it has remarkable market share in Bangladesh.
Most of the equipment could be smoothly upgraded to LTE, which will save a lot of investment, Cai told The Daily Star.
In line with the 'Vision 2021 Digital Bangladesh' strategy, Huawei has been actively involved in Bangladesh's ICT and telecom industry.
"We are the major participant in the national broadband network infrastructure in Bangladesh."
The China-funded 'Info-Sarker' project will help Bangladesh achieving its 'Vision 2021', Cai said.
In September 2013, Huawei signed a framework agreement with Grameenphone, Banglalink and Airtel to deploy 3G network.
In August last year, Huawei signed the framework agreement with Banglalion on LTE network development and expansion.
In 2014, the revenue of Huawei's carrier business increased by 16.4 percent to $31 billion globally, with a strong contribution from mobile broadband network roll outs.