SingTel to trial tri-band LTE-A CA in Q2
SingTel will adopt Ericsson's LTE-Advanced technology to deploy a 450Mbps tri-brand carrier aggregation LTE service. The operator will commence trials of tri-band CA in the second quarter and progressively roll out the network throughout Singapore over the next two years. Samsung will provide Galaxy devices supporting tri-band LTE-A CA for the trial. SingTel launched its 300Mbps LTE-A CA network in May last year, and is now planning to push the envelope further. “With smartphone penetration rates of over 85 percent in Singapore, data download speed is very important to our customers. This is why we continue to invest in improving our technology to ensure we deliver the fastest and most consistent experience to our customers,” SingTel CEO of Consumer Singapore Yuen Kuan Moon said.
India to have 100m 4G connections by 2020
Ericsson has predicted that India will have more than 100 million 4G connections by 2020, but that 3G will remain the main technology to rive broadband growth for the next three years. Ericsson executives told the Economic Times that the company expects 4G uptake to begin around 2016-2017. But the main challenge for India's telecom sector is spectrum, with India currently the most expensive market for spectrum. Airwaves assigned to government organisations which do not regularly use it could be repurposed for mobile services, Ericsson employees said.
SKT signs collaboration agreement with STC
SK Telecom has signed an MoU with Saudi Telecom Company to collaborate on the development of innovation business opportunities in Saudi Arabia and potentially the region. The agreement covers co-operation on areas including e-healthcare, education and smart cities. Both operators will make use of the SK Creative Economic Innovation Center, a joint initiative of SK Group and the Korean government. They have agreed to share technological expertise and marketing knowhow in a range of areas.
Judges skeptical of “irreparable harm” in Apple-Samsung case
US judges overseeing the latest patent infringement lawsuit filed by Apple against Samsung has expressed skepticism that Samsung is causing “irreparable” harm by not licensing patents for features including slide-to-unlock. Apple is seeking an injunction against sales of some Samsung devices in the US, but would need to prove irreparable harm to win such a ruling, Reuterssaid. US Appeals Court Judge Sharon Prost indicated that since Apple already extensively licenses its patents, she is “having a hard time getting past irreparable harm.”
China rejects US criticism of software backdoor plan
China and the US are clashing over Chinese proposals to require tech companies doing business in the market to put backdoors into their software and share encryption keys. A spokesperson for China's foreign ministry rejected criticism from president Obama about the proposed new rules, BBCreported, insisting that the powers were needed to fight terrorism and tackle leaks. Chinese state-owned news agency Xinhua accused the US of hypocrisy for objecting to the proposed laws, considering the allegations of NSA spying and the fact that the FBI had objected to Apple and Google building encryption into their smartphone operating systems.