Airtel has partnered with Nokia Networks to deploy FDD-LTE on 1800 MHz in six new (Mumbai, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Punjab and West Bengal) circles across India, as expected. Last year Nokia Networks grabbed a 3G contract from Bharti Airtel that included India-first dual band, dual carrier 3G network implementation. It had already partnered with Airtel to deploy TD-LTE network on the 2300 MHz in 2 other circles.
Commenting on the expansion and partnership, Abhay Savargaonkar, Chief Technical Officer, Bharti Airtel, said:
Having already launched the high-speed 4G services across four circles of India, we are now looking at extending this enriching high-speed broadband experience to new circles on 1800 MHz band. Our association with Nokia Networks will help us support our vision and provide a superior 4G network.
Sandeep Girotra, Vice President and Head of India, Nokia Networks, said:
Our rich experience gained in deploying FDD-LTE and TD-LTE to operators around the globe will ensure a fast and smooth network rollout. On top of that, our Flexi Zone solution will ensure the best possible LTE performance even in dense areas.
Airtel won 97 MHz of airwaves in the 1800 MHz band across 15 circles in spectrum auction last year. The company already announced that it plans to provide 4G based on FDD-LTE on 1800 MHz, in addition to its existing 4G TDD-LTE services on 2300 MHz.
It also offers 4G on mobile using Circuit Switched FallBack (CSFB) voice solution in Bangalore, Punjab, Chandigarh and Kolkata. Airtel has not announced when it would roll out 4G FDD-LTE services in India.