Nokia Siemens Tests LTE Voice CallNokia Siemens Tests LTE Voice Call

Nokia Siemens Networks reported that it has completed a path-finding LTE voice call from a commercial base station using standard software at the firm's R&D center in Ulm, Germany.

The firm said it used its Flexi Base Station, which it has already shipped to 80 global operators. The test was compliant with the 3GPP Release 8 LTE standard and supports EDGE, HSPA, and LTE data. EDGE and HSPA are widely used in current GSM networks, which account for most of the world's mobile phone networks.

Nokia Siemens Networks views its LTE-ready base stations as a sort of Trojan Horse approach to the LTE market -- the base stations can be quickly upgraded for LTE. "Wherever we have deployed LTE-capable base stations, it gives us an edge to quickly multiply and deploy LTE networks," the firm's Marc Rouanne told the Reuters news service. "Our strategy is focused on deployments and being first to the mass market."

In a related development, Nokia Siemens said it is adding 200 employees in its U.S. LTE endeavor at its R&D headquarters in Texas. The new hires will bring the total headcount at the facility to 500.

While Nokia Siemens appears to be concentrating its LTE effort on upgrading GSM networks, it is also working with Verizon Wireless, which has successfully tested its LTE trial networks in Boston and Seattle.

Other vendors working on the Verizon deployment include Alcatel Lucent, Ericsson and Starent. Verizon Wireless is upgrading to LTE from its existing CDMA network and is planning to roll out the service in Boston and Seattle later this year and in several additional U.S. locations next year. Motorola is testing LTE service in Japan for carrier KDDI, which is also upgrading from CDMA.

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