Telstra, Ericsson conduct groundbreaking LTE broadcast
Australia’s leading telecommunications provider, Telstra, has completed the world’s first LTE Broadcast session on a commercial LTE network. Ericsson’s LTE Broadcast Solution was successfully activated and tested on Telstra’s live network with the transmission of concurrent video feeds and large files to enabled devices.
During the demonstration, the devices received different video feeds, including a sports match replay, sporting network news, horse racing coverage and news. Additionally, the devices received a large file using the single LTE Broadcast channel.
Mike Wright, Telstra executive director, networks, says: “The trial is an important step in testing this technology to see how it provides network efficiencies while providing consumers the content they want in a high-quality experience. Our goal is to ensure consumers can get the content they are looking for easily and to explore the wider benefits that might be obtained using broadcasting technology.”
Thomas Norén, vice-president and head of project area radio, Ericsson says: “LTE Broadcast provides the ability to send the same content simultaneously to a very large number of devices in a target area. Mobile operators can use this ability and monetise their media and network assets for new services. Revenue generation and cost-saving opportunities are significant and provide an attractive value proposition for mobile operators.”
Ericsson’s LTE Broadcast solution is said to offer the highest quality broadcast video over LTE networks, enabling service providers to optimise the use of the existing spectrum and networks, both dynamically and efficiently. Qualcomm Labs’ LTE Broadcast SDK and Middleware enabled these features on the trial devices running on Qualcomm Snapdragon processor and integrated modem platforms.
“This is a significant milestone towards making LTE Broadcast a commercial reality,” says Mazen Chmaytelli, senior director of business development, Qualcomm Labs, Inc. “We are pleased to be working closely with Telstra and Ericsson to deliver an enhanced mobile experience using Qualcomm Labs’ LTE Broadcast SDK and Middleware running on Qualcomm Snapdragon processor and integrated modem platforms.”
Unique content can be delivered concurrently to a large number of subscribers, for example multiple video feeds with different angles for close-up views or replays during live sporting events. Other uses include sending updates and content to digital signage or billboards.