photo by resident in New Orleans, Louisiana – Antennas for AT&T – NOKIA Flexi zone Small Cell
New Orleans May Serve as AT&T 5G Service Testing Ground
AT&T officials have forecast that the new technology is still at least a year away, but New Orleans will likely be one of its testing grounds for the technology.
BY RICHARD THOMPSON, THE ADVOCATE, BATON ROUGE, LA. / FEBRUARY 2, 2017
(TNS) — New Orleans may be moving into the fast lane: AT&T is considering the city for the rollout of its new, ultrafast 5G wireless technology, which is still being developed for commercial use, city records show.
The telecommunications giant filed a public-records request with the city late last month that noted New Orleans is being considered as a possible site for the emerging technology.
The records request sought “any contracts that the city may have executed with respect to allowing telecommunications companies or their agents to affix equipment to city-owned property” over a two-year period.
In particular, AT&T sought copies of contracts between the city and any company, organization or third party dealing with “the ability to attach wireless telecommunications equipment to city-owned utility poles, street lights, billboards or structures, or any other city-owned infrastructure for the purpose of expanding cellular network coverage.
Few details are available, including what kind of timeline the company has in mind and what other cities are in the running.
New Orleans officials said they responded to the company’s request and consider it closed, but it’s unclear whether the company was satisfied with the response.
“We take a calculated, deliberate approach in rolling out new or upgraded services, and we evaluate each city, including New Orleans, on a market-by-market basis to ensure the best possible customer experience,” Tarvis Thompson, an AT&T spokesman, said. “As part of that process, we regularly work with local governments to determine options of deploying network resources.”
In an announcement last month detailing its plans for expanding the high-speed wireless technology, AT&T said it had conducted initial lab trials that had hit wireless connection speeds of up to 14 gigabits per second.
AT&T officials have forecast that a standard for the new technology is still at least a year away, with the first mobile networks becoming commercially available in the coming years.
One thing’s for certain: It will be fast.
AT&T anticipates that 5G will deliver speeds at least 10 times and perhaps 100 times faster than current 4G LTE connections, allowing users to download a typical TV show in less than three seconds.
©2017 The Advocate, Baton Rouge, La. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
http://www.govtech.com/dc/articles/New-Orleans-May-Serve-as-ATT-5G-Service-Testing-Ground.html
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Nokia and China Unicom to enhance mobile broadband using small cells
19 NOVEMBER 2017
Nokia and China Unicom are to offer Nokia Flexi Zone small cells and an AirScale low power radio head for deployment in 31 provinces in China. This will give China Unicom’s subsidiaries new flexibility as they densify busy city 3G and 4G LTE networks and further enhance performance in suburban and rural locations.
“This agreement extends the long-term cooperation between China Unicom and Nokia,” said Gao Bo, head of Customer Business Team for China Unicom at Nokia Shanghai Bell. “We have developed a small cell portfolio that will allow operators to cost-efficiently densify and scale their networks, boosting 3G and 4G performance to stay ahead of demand. By combining this small cell technology with our extensive global services expertise, we can optimize any deployment for China Unicom.”
Initial small cell deployments will allow China Unicom subsidiaries to extend coverage and capacity to meet growing subscriber mobile data demands. According to China Unicom’s most recent operating report, the company has seen the number of 4G subscribers on its network increase during 2017 by approximately 55 million to reach a total of over 160 million.
By deploying the Nokia Flexi Zone portfolio, China Unicom will be able to densify the network where it isn’t possible to add a macro base station because of space or cost constraints. Small cells can also be used to extend coverage and capacity inside offices and homes, as well as in high-traffic locations such as train stations and shopping malls.
The ability to upgrade the small cell portfolio via software to deliver narrow-band IoT (NB-IoT) support means that the deployments will also lay the foundation for the future introduction of IoT and 5G services. Future implementation of NB-IoT will enable the connection of myriad sensors for the delivery of many smart city services, including smart transport and metering systems as well as the introduction of smart healthcare.
Nokia will leverage its extensive global services expertise to optimize small cell deployments for China Unicom, including network planning and optimization, equipment commissioning and care in warrantee services.
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4G/5G Small Cell Antennas – United States
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