MTN has launched the next generation of mobile network technology called Long-Term Evolution Advanced (LTE-A) in the affluent suburbs of Camps Bay, Moreleta Park and at the Gautrain station in Rosebank.
LTE-A offers MTN’s customers a cutting-edge network experience that is robust, it packs more speed into the same amount of spectrum which should allow more people to access the network simultaneously while improving the overall customer experience.
Krishna Chetty, Acting CTO at MTN SA says: “Our introduction of this new technology is in line with MTN’s vision of leading South Africa into a bold new digital world and to keep up with continuous customer demands for higher network speeds. LTE-A allows us to prepare our networks for the digital age and the introduction of avante-garde digital solutions that are expected to come to the market in the future.”
The ability to aggregate or pool spectrum is one of the primary benefits of LTE-A. Using this technology, MTN is able to combine portions of its available spectrum where it can be re-farmed, to enable LTE-A.
The lack of critical high value spectrum has compelled MTN to re-farm existing spectrum to cater for the rollout of new generation networks such as LTE-A.
LTE-A is still relatively new and thus only a few high end devices are compatible with this network. Many older smart devices support LTE.
“MTN wishes to encourage its customers to establish if LTE is activated on their devices as this will enable them to get better speeds. In addition, activating LTE on a smartphone also helps to move from 3G to LTE thus helping to create a more seamless network experience,” concludes Chetty.
